“It’s Better To Have Grass” – Rodgers Warns of Rugby Park’s Artificial Pitch Impact

Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers has spoken about the artificial pitch at Rugby Park with the Hoops in action against Kilmarnock this afternoon.

The Irishman was open and honest about his preference for grass pitches over artificial, with his belief that grass results in better quality Football across the country.

Rodgers said: (BBC Scotland), “We showed at the end of last season here the performance we can make on this pitch but you have to be storm, aggressive, and play with speed on the ball, and that’s something we want to continue with.

“I’ve always said for the standards of Scottish football it’s better… to have grass. I understand the clubs are different in terms of needs and commercial.

“It’s never been an excuse. We will never use it as an excuse.”

Rodgers is correct that Celtic did put in a real impressive performance at Rugby Park to win the league title last season in an incredible 5-0 victory, with Adam Idah leading the charge and the Irish striker starts this afternoon.

With Derek McInnes’ side announcing in recent days that it will delay its plan to replace the controversial artificial pitch at Rugby Park with a natural grass surface, rescheduling the transition for the start of the 2026-27 season, it is a negative for Scottish Football.

The surface certainly played a part in Cameron Carter-Vickers missing today’s Game as a precaution due to the dangerous nature of the surface.

Injuries from artificial pitches are common in Football and often lead to Games that are less free-flowing, with the ball frequently bouncing unpredictably.