Barnesville Will Debut New-Look Shamrock Stadium Turf On Friday
Shamrocks Host Buckeye Local In Season Opener
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BARNESVILLE - There were times in the past two weeks that Brad Hannahs was very nervous, especially the last couple of days. And for good reason.
The athletic director at Barnesville High School wasn't sure - until late Wednesday - that the Shamrocks would be able to host Buckeye Local in a mutual high school football season-opener on Friday due to ongoing work during a $2 million dollar renovation project at Shamrock Stadium.
"I was getting pretty nervous. It was nerve-wracking at times," Hannahs said late Wednesday night. "We (the athletic department) didn't know for sure that we would be able to play at home until mid-week."
Had the field not been ready, alternate plans had the two teams playing at Red Devil Stadium in St. Clairsville. The Red Devils open Friday night, as well, on the road at Canton South and many of their staff would be available.
"We would've had to take our entire game night staff to St. Clairsville," Hannahs explained. "From the parking people to the ticket takers to the press box staff to the chain gang. We would've had to use all of our people."
Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. A large crowd is expected and parking will be at a premium, according to Hannahs.
"Parking will be limited more than usual," he noted. "We are asking our fans to park at the elementary school, area church lots and even the park so that the Buckeye Local fans can have a place to park."
Shamrock Stadium has undergone an extensive refurbishing of its playing surface, as Barnesville, like many Ohio Valley schools, has made the switch from natural grass to turf.
Hannahs said work on the project started in the spring before school was out for the summer.
Work on installation of the turf is being done by AstroTurf. Construction involved an 8-inch excavation to be filled with a 6-inch stone base topped with a sand and rubber layer and then the turf. Beneath the layers, a drainage system would be installed with three sides of the field graded to improve drainage.
That work was provided by Playing Surface Solutions of Meadville, Pa.
McKinley & Associates of Wheeling served as project manager.
The stadium also received new LED lighting. The final light-up before Friday night was performed Wednesday night by Hannahs and long-time booster George Thornton.
The project has been helped along by the Goaliners Club, a dedicated group of staunch Barnesville supporters. According to member Dick Thomas, the club has already donated the first of its pledged $20,000 that will last for five years, thus raising $100,000 towards the project.