Staff Story

I’ve worked in turf management for over four decades. Ours is an unheralded profession, but one that requires skill, commitment and knowledge. Since coming to Melbourne Grammar in 2013, I’ve had significant opportunities to deepen my understanding of turf management practices, both in Australia and overseas.  

My career path began with a passion for cricket. I realised in my early twenties that I probably wasn’t going to have a career as a professional cricketer, so I enrolled in a distance education course in turf management and soon started working on a local council cricket pitch. Since then, this job has taken me all over the world. I’ve spent time working on English cricket pitches, a Scottish golf course, and even on gardens and turf up in Darwin.

Today, I’m lucky to have a leadership role in a workplace that values expertise and supports staff to take every opportunity. I’m now in my (fifth) sixth year as senior coach of our First XI cricket team, which brings my lifelong passion for cricket into my professional life. As a coach, I’ve had the opportunity to be part of in four (a number of) international cricket tours with Melbourne Grammar, including our most recent tour to the UK (and the Scotland Netherlands) in 2024. In the 2023 tour after playing in England we spent a week of the tour playing cricket in the Netherlands and Belgium.

These international experiences have provided the perfect complement to my work as grounds manager. On a previous UK tour with the First XI, I spent time learning from groundskeepers at Eton, Harrow and St Paul’s, visited the international turf sports research centre in Yorkshire, and spent time with grounds managers at both Lord’s Cricket Ground and The Oval in London.

Before returning to Australia, I visited a friend who (now works) worked as grounds manager in the UAE at the Dubai training and test cricket venue to learn more about how he manages pitches in extremely hot, dry conditions. By meeting with overseas experts, I’ve learned how other turf managers use different machinery and tools, and I’ve been able to implement some of those practices here at the School to improve our grounds even further.

My team and I work hard to ensure the grounds and sporting fields at Melbourne Grammar are maintained to the highest possible standard. We appreciate the impact this has on student and staff wellbeing, as well as on educational outcomes. I’m very lucky to have a great team of highly skilled, passionate horticulturalists around me to help manage four turf ovals, three synthetic fields, three synthetic tennis courts and the School’s extensive gardens. We all take a lot of pride in what we do.

What I enjoy most about my role is the weekly challenge of preparing our turf for games—I get a lot of satisfaction out of that. I love the outdoors, supporting the development of my team, and being part of the School community. I’m really fortunate.

Recognised as one of Australia’s preeminent turf managers, John Shannon has been grounds manager at Melbourne Grammar School for over 11 years following 15 years working in a horticultural/turf managment teaching role. With his team of eight staff, he manages grounds at Edwin Flack Park, our St Kilda Road campus, Grimwade House and our boarding houses. Building on his previous coaching experience, John was appointed coach of the First XI cricket team in 2019.