Carlisle United head groundsman Dave Mitchell is confident Sunday’s Emirates FA Cup fourth round tie with Everton will go ahead on Brunton Park’s recently-laid turf.
The Premier League giants will rock up at the venue where, just a few short weeks ago, three Koi Carp belonging to a nearby resident were found swimming at their home as Mitchell and his team pumped 14 feet of water out of the stadium following the devastation caused by Storm Desmond.
A clean-up job that meant the League Two club had to stage three ‘home’ matches elsewhere in the country has been completed and last weekend almost 7,500 people took in their 1-1 draw with York City.
Carlisle United v Everton
Emirates FA Cup
Fourth Round
1.30pm, Sunday 31 January
Brunton Park
Live on BT Sport
Winners receive £90,000 from prize fund
by Joshua Richards
And while Mitchell, who arrived at the club 11 years ago, is confident there will be football played again this week, it does irk him that Everton will not be gracing his pride and joy – destroyed by Desmond.
“After we had pumped the water out we were left with a layer of muck on the turf about 10mm thick,” Mitchell explained.
“We had a walk on it and made a real mess! There was absolutely no chance you could play a game of football on it. It wasn’t safe, if would affect the quality of the game, so we made the decision that the only way forwards was to relay the pitch.
“I feel frustrated we can’t play this game on the old pitch, it was a good pitch.
“It can’t produce what we want it to produce, because it’s a stop gap until the end of the season.
“There were no ill-effects after the weekend and it’s been relatively warm this week, albeit there has been a lot of rain.
“The weather is bad at the moment. Areas have been flooded again and we have been informed that we’re on high alert right through to Sunday.
“We’ve got used to it, but it does wear you down. As much as anything we’ve got a team who needs to be able to train on grass from time to time and we can’t offer them that.”
As well as a place in the last-16, the winners will take home £90,000 in prize money – funds that would make a world of difference to Carlisle.
The Everton Fans Forum had raised £2,500, at the last count, to help the residents affected by Storm Desmond with the Toffees adding a further £5,000.
But Mitchell hopes his team’s players are not in equally charitable mood in front of a sell-out crowd come Sunday afternoon.
“I’m pleased for the fans to get a big game to see how well our team can do,” he added.
“Everton had a League Cup semi-final this week, so that’s three games in a week, which takes its toll on any team.
“I think we’ll have a good chance. It would be magnificent for the club to get through.”
