GAELIC GAMES CHAMPIONSHIP 2008 NEWS:LIGHTNING WAS the only thing that would have triggered the suspension of play in Croke Park last Saturday, when torrential rain drenched the hugely entertaining All-Ireland football quarter-final between Galway and Kerry.

Despite the deluge, the pitch coped extremely well but according to the stadium director Peter McKenna, the main concern was that lightning would force the evacuation of the pitch - the spectators would have been safe in the stands.

"The only issue that could have stopped the match on Saturday was lightning. That's very unpredictable and any degree of predictability that exists suggests a propensity to hit power sources.

"We researched this and looked at US venues that have to cope with frequent electrical storms.

"I couldn't say that it's scientifically proven but the observational evidence from somewhere like Kansas, which gets a lot of lightning, is that it heads for electrical sources.

"The contingency plan involves switching off the electronic scoreboard and the big screen and getting the players off the pitch. A film of water is a perfect conductor and there's a danger of massive voltage going into the legs. We would also ask spectators to remain in the stands, which are earthed."

The effort involved in coping with the rain was intensified by the scheduling of three matches on Sunday, including the Cork-Kilkenny All-Ireland hurling semi-final that climaxed the triple bill.

According to McKenna, the victorious Kilkenny manager Brian Cody was impressed with the quality of the pitch after four matches in two days and the heaviest rainfall in August since Hurricane Charlie in 1986.

On a conventional pitch the match might have had to be abandoned at half-time.

"Quite possibly," according to McKenna. "It's hard to judge but three inches of rain is extraordinary and for the pitch to take it with no deterioration is remarkable. I was talking to Brian Cody on Sunday night and he told me that it had been a cracking surface for the match."

McKenna praised the efforts of the ground staff in repairing the surface in preparation for the second day's matches.

"A huge amount of work went in on the Saturday and Sunday. There were 12 guys working until 11 on Saturday night and again at seven on Sunday morning, divoting and repairing pitch marks, cutting grass and working on the goalmouths.

"They did a tremendous job - you wouldn't have known that there was a match the previous day let alone torrential rain."

Ironically, it was equipment that had been key to the soccer and rugby internationals at the venue that helped Croke Park to deal so smoothly with Saturday's extreme weather, the pitch's suction pumps and the stadium floodlights being pressed into service during the summer months.

"The pitch is sand-based and designed to dry quickly and let the water run through," said McKenna. "We also have a suction system to draw off excess water and avoid 'pooling', which causes huge grass damage.

"Mind you, we never thought we'd have to use the suction and the floodlights in August."

By the end of the first half rain had started and a cloud settled that darkened the ground and began to restrict visibility.

The decision was taken at half-time to switch on the lights for the second half, only the second time this has happened for an intercounty match at the venue.

"It takes six or seven minutes to get the lights full on. We don't use light meters or anything, just judge it on sight. The lights take six or seven minutes to come fully on.

"We decided not to turn them on in the first half even though it was getting darker and darker because it would have been disruptive for the players."

Complicating matters was the need for an egress plan that took into account flooding on Jones's Road. McKenna was critical of the fact the road hadn't been able to run off the water despite its comparative elevation.

"Jones's Road is a couple of metres higher than the pitch but the road didn't drain properly. It's something for the city council to look at," he said.