Foster’s football team has yet to play a game on Neudorf Stadium’s new artificial turf field, but the excitement is building.
Especially about the purple end zones.
“It is really nice stuff and looks great and the kids are really excited about it – especially the purple turf – but it is not like the transition from grass to turf,” said Matt Leonard, Foster’s head football coach.
The Bulldogs will get a first look at the new artificial turf on Wednesday, the first day of practice. Players need 12 days of practice to participate in the opener against Interlake High School on Friday, Sept. 5.
Tuesday night is a prelude to Wednesday’s first practice when the team gathers at Foster for Bulldog Olympics and a movie. The Bulldogs will have with them sleeping bags and pillows – and whatever they need for the first practice at 9 a.m.
The new turf doesn’t give the Bulldogs a home-field advantage, but there are other benefits, Leonard said.
“The only thing I think it will help with will be injury and wear and tear on the legs and feet of our athletes,” he said.
The FieldTurf replaces AstroTurf that was installed about 11 years ago, typically the lifespan of such turf.
The roughly $490,000 project to lay nearly 80,000 square feet of FieldTurf Revolution 2.0 was completed “within our expectations of time and budget,” said Martin Turney, executive director of finance and operations for the Tukwila School District.
A final walk-through to inspect the finished job was planned for last week, but no significant issues were expected, Turney said.
The project was extended initially by 12 days because workers needed to fill in portions of the field’s under layer, he said.
“It was important to do this work to ensure safety and maximize performance of the field,” he said.
The work started in early July, with the removal of strips of synthetic turf, including the ones with “Foster” and “Bulldogs” near each end zone of the football field.
By the end of the month, the new green FieldTurf was in place and the end zones were an empty field of purple until the crews started placing the “FOSTER” and “BULLDOGS.”
PARENT NIGHT FOR FALL SPORTS
Foster Fall Sports Parent Night is 6 p.m., Sept. 4, at the Foster High School Performing Arts Center. Familes will meet coaches for information about their child’s sport.
