Artificial surfaces had a huge impact on my joints and I feel Murphy’s pain

WATCHING Rangers take on Kilmarnock yesterday, I have to say I felt Jamie Murphy’s pain. When I reached my mid-30s, these artificial pitches had a huge impact on my joints. I had two training sessions on a 4G pitch and by the end of the second session, I knew I had to have a back operation — I was finished. Done. This was after four injections in my back. I feel the pain of what other professionals are going through. When I was in my early 20s playing on these pitches, I thought it was nice when they watered them and it was a good surface. If you lived in the North Pole, then you would need artificial pitches. But this is Scotland. We’ve got a winter break and money to spend on pitches. It is becoming ridiculous because there are more clubs using them. In the top flight, we now have Livingston, Hamilton and, of course, Kilmarnock. Falkirk in the Championship also have one — and one of my last games was there. We won and I remember afterwards getting out of the car and feeling seismic pain. I thought: ‘Oh my God, what is this?’ So I do feel the pain of players. Rangers goalkeeper Allan McGregor tweeted about these pitches yesterday saying to get rid of them. He has had serious knee injuries. You don’t want to be diving about on Astroturf pitches. You have got the warm-up and then making ten or 11 saves in a game. For a goalkeeper, it must feel like you have been beaten up by the time you are finished. I think the SFA need to look at this and say that we need to eradicate as many as possible in the top flight.