Seen them and they look pretty bad


But prob not as bad as Tommy Coyles broken leg he got playing for widnes academy this afty on the same pitch which meant the game had to be abandoned after 46 mins



Think the RFL will be taking a second look at this pitch if there are any further complaints/incidents

First off I agree that if these types of injuries I've seen of Mathers occur consistently throughout the season and the cause stems from the ipitch then it should go and Widnes should hold there hands up to a bad decision made.

But until then the facts that some people forget are:
-it was -4degrees last night, if the ipitch was grass the game would have been called off
-Mathers looked bloody but its not like super league players never get burns off of grass as well
-that was the very first game
-its top of the range with a cost of £500,000 and so there is no way you can compare it to fake pitches of the 80's

You can scrutinise the pitch all you want but at least one more game is needed in reasonable temperatures; I too want it gone if it keeps doing this. Until then it could still well be a pioneering development for rugby league!

Come on chaps there may be a few genuine questions with burns etc (though one or more players?).

But some stuff being blamed on the pitch us barmy! Slowing players turning speed... I mean really? Pitch looked superp and is a great fast surface. Bounce seems softer if anything is all but as said it's a rugby ball and rain / ice etc can change it anyway.

whether the Ipitch has any contribution to Tommy Coyles broken leg it will not be known unless they have some close up camera action but it will now be on all players minds about the footwear they should be using.

broken legs can happen even on grass ask Chev Walker, but the cuts and grazes are going to be a continuing issue not more so for the opposition but for the home side Widnes that will have to endure 13 plus games on there as well as the training

Good point. I'm delighted we won, but you have to question the wisdom of playing the game in those temperatures in the first place. Good for ice hockey, but any other sport, and you're just inviting injury.

Lot of players from both teams at tonights game with cut knees too so it's not just the ipitch that does it.

The one good point I did see from it was the game was played at a speed you don't normally see until the summer months.

No good having a game played in snow or icy conditions when spectators can't get there.health and safety will call it off because of spectators safety in and around the stadium.rugby is played on grass end of !!!!

It wasn't just knees though, it was arms as well. Even some Widnes players had it, so the pitch has obviously had a major factor in this. plastic pitch out!

Totally different injury, you want to take a look at Mathers pics on twitter

It may solely be a result of the temperture but at times it looked like it wasn't taking a stud properly when people were trying to change direction. Big advantage to the attacking team when turning the opposition

Shit that's pretty nasty

The Widnes players are going to have to come up with some form of protection from that happening every home fixture.

Just wear a couple of tubigrips on your knees and elbows, support and protection in one.

Our RFL heros are going to end up looking like NFL players if these plastic pitches are the future. Its the only way they will protect there skin from being sliced on a play matt

Surely there will be nothing left of the Widnes players come the end of the season.

[size=150Hanbury and Dean doing a nice little run around[/size

I'm on record as disagreeing with this pitch as far back as last year's Boots N All jizz-fest about the whole thing and it appears I was right; it's a training surface and should NOT be used for competitive matches.

By the way - has anyone else seen some of the scumbag comments from Widnes fans to Mathers on Twitter after he posted those pictures of his i-injuries? Very classy.

Yes, they are being extremely pathetic. Mathers has the evidence and some bitter fans refuse to believe it because we spoiled their welcome back party and think that artifical pitches are the way forward - are they heck!

Seems like Salford and Cas was played on an iPitch last night as several of their players had similar if not worse grazes on their knees and elbows too!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Matty Ashursts Knees on Twitter

or wait........ shock...... maybe frozen grass and frozen artificial grass both respond in the same way. (if not it being a case of the iPitch performing a bit better.
Also interesting to hear that there were a couple of injuries to.. no-one complained that the ground was too hard from what's been said so sounds like it's 1-0 to the iPitch.

ok lets see if them injuries are sustained in the summer on the Grass pitch compared to the I pitch

Some sense at last!!! Anyone else want to come on and admit they've possibly jumped the gun on this thing.

Yep. Rather vile comments that were well out of order!

Does anyone have a link to some highlights of fridays game?

Quite the opposite; frozen grass will only cause injuries like that in the winter months, hence the move to summer rugby. The plastic pitch looks set to cause them year-round - time will tell.