This is curious because the stadium has a retractable roof about whose use, however, the authorities appear to be in a state of the utmost confusion.Tommy Bedford, the great South African No 8 (who was tiny by modern standards) once suggested that in these islands we should play rugby well into the summer, but have a rest in January and February. There is much to be said for this point of view.You cannot teach backs on a muddy field any more than you can create batsmen on an uneven pitch. Contrary to mythology, even prop forwards do not enjoy playing in the mud, for the obvious reason that they cannot get a grip. The greatest enemies of rugby are still, however, wind and sunshine. I have never understood why pitches are not constructed automatically on a north-south axis. Nevertheless, the time has come for rugby, like cricket, to have its own inspector of pitches.. Welsh Rugby authorities were criticised yesterday following a court case which saw the Bridgend prop Chris Stephens ordered to pay £2,000 compensation to a rival player he almost blinded in one eye.

Welsh Rugby authorities were criticised yesterday following a court case which saw the Bridgend prop Chris Stephens ordered to pay £2,000 compensation to a rival player he almost blinded in one eye. The Cross Keys full-back Ioan Bebb had to undergo an operation to save his sight in one eye following an on-pitch attack by Stephens in a Welsh-Scottish League match.He has suffered a 25 per cent loss in vision from a detached retina and has been forced to retire from the game. Stephens, a 25-year-old Wales A player, was yesterday ordered by a court to pay the compensation and do 200 hours of community service after admitting causing grievous bodily harm to Bebb.After the court case Bebb criticised the Welsh Rugby Union for failing to act over violence in general, and the Stephens incident in particular, claiming their inaction forced him to go ahead with the court action."To take the steps to go through the court was possibly the hardest decision I have ever had to take," Bebb said. "But it was forced upon me because the governing bodies did not want to take any action."Nobody wants violence of any kind in sport. Unfortunately when it does appear they are not seen to be pro-active in taking any steps."Stephens, of Maesteg, admitted causing grievous bodily harm to Bebb by punching him in the face. Blackwood Magistrates Court heard that the attack on 30-year-old PE teacher Bebb, dislodged a retina in his right eye and could have blinded him.

He needed immediate medical attention for a broken nose and stitches for a cut to the face and later underwent surgery at the Bristol Eye Hospital to save his vision.Nick Lewis, defending Stephens, said that rugby is a physical game and both players knew that. He said Stephens received a series of blows to the head himself from Bebb and struck out once with no intention of harming him.The chairman of the bench, John Gaydon, told Stephens that his good character and clean previous record had saved him from a jail sentence."I believe that the assault was the result of actions at that moment in time and was in no way pre-meditated," he said.. Deborah Parker, 24, earns £14,000 as a grade D staff nurse at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Gateshead, Tyne and Wear, where she works on the elderly care ward. Deborah Parker, 24, earns £14,000 as a grade D staff nurse at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Gateshead, Tyne and Wear, where she works on the elderly care ward. She lives with her boyfriend Paul Heron, 21, a telephone inquiry worker, who earns £10,000 a year.

The couple have a mortgage and struggle on their combined salary of £24,000.A 3.7 per cent pay rise will mean a £44 a month pay rise for Ms Parker, who has been qualified for slightly more than 18 months. She says the rise is an "insult" to the work nurses do and a barrier to attracting more people into the profession.Ms Parker said: "I love nursing, I love my job, but I can't say that I will still be in the post in five years. There are many jobs with much better salaries for half the work."If the situation does not improve I may be forced to rethink my career options, which is a step backwards for what the Government are apparently hoping to achieve."She added: "The pay increase is nowhere near enough for the increased workload we are expected to carry out."I came into nursing with such high ideals I wanted to care for people. But I quickly realised that the pressures were such that much of our time was being taken up with administration and other issues."We give the best possible care, but our resources our stretched to the limit and therefore the care is not what it should be."This ward is supposed to be fast-track rehabilitation forthe elderly, but we are taking patients with a wide spectrum of problems."The staff shortage means I'm required to work as a grade E nurse taking on the staff management responsibilities which go hand in hand with that. We are paid for 37.5 hours, but we frequently work more hours with no extra pay. We are supposed to get the extra hours in time owed, but we don't have enough nurses to be able to claim the time owed."A 3.7 per cent pay rise means just £11 a week for me I own a house and I struggle to make ends meet as it is. Ifmy circumstances change, should I decide to have a family, I would not be able to cope."I'm only asking to be paid for the work that I'm doing.