"About half this season we have not been able to train on Tuesdays and we have missed a couple of Thursdays as well," Leslie told the Otago Daily Times.
He said Tuesday practices were critical, as much of the coaching was done then.
"In all my time playing or coaching rugby in Dunedin I have never seen the fields in such good condition," he said.
"The grounds always bounce back, and just to get a bit of mud on your knees in training is not a problem."
Leslie said not being able to train on council grounds last night would make life hard on the coaches of the four teams in the semifinals. Dunedin City Council sport fields facilities officer Harold Driver said the council grounds had been saturated during one of Dunedin's wettest winters.
"Given the rain that fell on Saturday night and Sunday, followed by severe frosts on Monday, the DCC had to give the grounds an opportunity to dry out and recover," Driver said.
"The council is also mindful that clubs will be contesting play-off games in the various grades on their home grounds over the next few weekends and [they] want the grounds to be at their best."
There were drying winds yesterday and the training grounds may be open tonight.
"We have already confirmed the training grounds will be open on Thursday night."
Driver emphasised that the closure of grounds for midweek training was not new.
"We have closed grounds in the past given a similar amount of rain, but the coaches there today would not have been aware of the bad winters in the past."
The grounds would be used by secondary schools, juniors and colts for another six weeks once the premier competition had ended.
"We are not here to be awkward and obstruct," Driver said. "But we are obliged to manage our asset to the best of our ability."
