Why total-play became cricket’s big cover story
Innovative and lightweight, this system of breathable pitch protection can be put in place by one person
This year marks the 15th anniversary of total-play Ltd’s flagship cricket ground cover the ‘Climate Cover System’. Its revolutionary design has remained unchanged since the product’s launch, and it is still the only truly breathable flat sheet cricket pitch cover on the market.
Developed by former first-class groundsman David Bates in conjunction with a team of scientists, the Climate Cover System™ is designed by cricket groundsmen for the cricket groundsman.
Its fabric has been selected to be extremely strong and both translucent and breathable. This importantly allows both light and air to pass through; protecting the pitch from rain whilst allowing vapour to escape and ensuring the grass plant continues to grow underneath – attributes that mean the covers can be left in place for far longer periods than traditional flat sheet cricket pitch covers.
This, alongside its light weight and easy-to-deploy design, make it a key piece of kit which can be found in use at the ECB National Academy, the Kia Oval, Test match grounds, county grounds, schools and local league clubs across the country. One recent satisfied customer is John Chaffin of Veryan CC in Cornwall, which purchased a Climate Cover System™ last summer, who says:
“The cover itself is brilliant, as a small village club it’s hard finding people to help with the groundwork, so having a cover that’s light enough to put on and take off by yourself is amazing. The storage bag provided allows easy transportation and the cover being so breathable has allowed us to have the cover on for days at a time.”
As well as marking an anniversary for the Climate Cover System™, 2017 has also seen total-play make some key upgrades to its entry-level pitch cover system. Designed to offer quick protection against rain prior to or during play, Rain Cover is strong and semi-translucent; engineered to give maximum durability for frequent use.
These attributes have seen the cover especially popular with grass roots clubs since its launch back in 2013.
The relaunched version for 2017 builds on these qualities, with an improved material having been sourced offering added UV stability. The covers are constructed from 14x14 HDPE woven yarn with double LDPE lamination, 100 per cent waterproof, and feature webbing reinforced handles, hems and eyelets for added durability.
These specification updates, combined with Rain Cover’s keen price, make it the most cost-effective cricket cover currently available through the NatWest CricketForce initiative.
For more information on total-play’s range of ground covers, including the Climate Cover System™ and the improved Rain Cover, visit www.thecricketgroundshop.co.uk