THE St Lawrence ground has not recovered from the Elton John concert staged there nearly a month ago.

The stage, weighing more than 200 tons, has caused a large part of the cricket outfield at the Nackington Road end to sink.

A giant forking machine has been used to vertidrain and raise the surface but the outfield is not expected to regain its bowling green flatness before next season.

Mike Grantham, Kent County Cricket Club’s head groundsman for the past 13 years, has received widespread praise from the game for his professional handling of the concert on June 3 and is a candidate for the England and Wales Cricket Board’s Groundsman of the Year award.

He said: "By far the biggest problem for us has been to raise the level of the outfield that sank under all the steel supporting the stage.

"It’s still far from level as you can see when the ball runs over that area of the outfield. I cannot see it returning to normal before next season."

* Full story in this week's Kentish Gazette.