Rugby "is undergoing a quiet, bloodless revolution through the introduction of plastic pitches," with Pro12 Rugby side Glasgow Warriors just the latest club to have opted for an artificial grass pitch, according to Iain Morrison of the SCOTSMAN. The Warriors’ new pitch "comes after a season when Scotstoun was unplayable for three league matches, including that 'home' 1872 Cup tie against Edinburgh which was switched to Murrayfield." The spread of AGPs "is picking up momentum, especially south of the Border." Saracens "paved the way" when its community-friendly AGP at the Allianz Stadium opened for business in an LV Cup match against the Cardiff Blues in Jan. '13 and it was quickly followed by Newcastle Falcons. Another set of Warriors, these ones operating in Worcester, "are ripping up the grass in preparation for next season’s plastic replacement which has an organic infill rather than using the usual rubber crumb." Next season a third of the 12 Aviva Premiership clubs "will be playing their home matches on plastic or semi-artificial pitches," with Bath and Gloucester said to be pondering a similar move. Not everyone "is happy at the prospect of plastic, although there are few dissenting voices in the one-party state that is Scottish professional rugby so you have to look south for naysayers" (SCOTSMAN, 6/12).
