Academy student named in England squad

Cliff Moyo, aged 16 from Hanley, was named in the squad for the 2010 International Season following trials at Lilleshall National Sports Centre.

Cliff, a highly-rated centre back, is a member of the MMU Football Academy in association with Newcastle-under-Lyme College.

As a member of the ESFA England squad, Cliff will play against the Wales, Northern Ireland, Republic of Ireland and Scotland teams; the last two of which will be shown live on Sky Sports on April 23 and 30.

The ESFA squad will also play friendlies against other international teams.

Nigel Deeley, joint head coach at the academy, said: “As you can imagine, we’re delighted to have one of our boys selected for international football. It’s an incredible achievement, not least because he is a year younger than most of the other players in the squad!”

He added: “His success is also fantastic news for the College and credit must go to all the staff who have been involved in his development.”

A pre-requisite of the MMU/NULC football Academy is that players continue to achieve a good standard of academic work.

Steve Teasdale, Curriculum Manager in Sport and Public Services at the College, said: “Not only does Cliff give 100 per cent on the pitch, he also puts a lot into his studies and is currently achieving very good marks on his course. We’re exceptionally proud of him.”

The Academy is offering young footballers the chance to attend an recruitment open day on Thursday 18 February from 11am at Manchester Metropolitan University’s Alsager campus.

Organisers are looking to recruit boys aged between 16 and 18 of good football ability to form part of an under-19 team playing at a high level in the Football Conference Youth League.

Boys who are accepted will work towards a BTEC National Diploma in Sports Performance and Excellence at NULC while also having the opportunity to pursue their football career.

For more information regarding arrival times and registration, players are asked to contact academy coaches Melvyn Wilkes, m.wilkes@mmu.ac.uk or Nigel Deeley, n.j.deeley@mmu.ac.uk on 0161 2475298 or 0161 2475295.

For general information about the football academies at NULC, visit www.nulc.ac.uk/football