England Football Under 21s Team Stays at Stoke by Nayland Hotel

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There was a real buzz around Stoke by Nayland Hotel, Golf & Spa last week when the team and large entourage of the England Under 21 football squad came to stay with Head Coach and former England team player, Stuart Pearce, for 6 days. They used the hotel as their base for training and to play against Iceland at Colchester Stadium.

The team performed brilliantly against Iceland, winning 5 – 0, and many of the hotel staff were given tickets to go and watch their decisive victory. The team then went by coach to watch England play against Spain at Wembley on the Saturday, and then flew from Stansted the next day for their match against Belgium.

The squad numbered 47, to include trainers, physios, video analyst, performance analyst and several other security and admin staff. The team trained at both Ipswich Town and Colchester Utd and also made good use of the Peake Fitness Technogym gymnasium and pool during their stay. Many of the team, some of whom are very accomplished golfers, also managed to fit in some golf on one of the hotel’s two championship courses.

Stuart Pearce, MBE, Head Coach of the England Under-21s said, “We were thoroughly I impressed by the facilities and the staff at Stoke by Nayland, and would recommend the hotel to any sports team staying in the area.” Stuart Pearce is also the Manager of the Great Britain and Northern Ireland Olympic Football team.

The FA selected the family-owned Stoke by Nayland Hotel, Golf & Spa to host the team because of its superb facilities as well as its excellent track record in accommodating Premiership teams such as Manchester Utd, Arsenal and Chelsea in the past. The England Ladies Football Team has also stayed at the hotel for a training week.

Some of the boys are already playing for Premiership teams, such as talented 18 year old Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain who plays for Arsenal and whose father Mark Chamberlain also played for England. Alex was the youngest English player to score a goal in the Champions League recently. During the team’s stay he was interviewed by ESDN presenter, Darrell Currie, by the roaring fire in the Hotel Lounge and spoke about his recent hat trick when they beat Reykjavik 3 - 0 in October.

Other notable players staying at the hotel with the team included Team Captain, Jordon Hendersen who plays for Liverpool and Chelsea’s Josh McEACHRAN.

Matt Manning, Operations Director of Stoke by Nayland Hotel said, “It was a pleasure for us to host the Under 21 team here at the hotel. All the boys were very polite and well behaved and the staff really enjoyed looking after them and their entourage. During the week the team seemed to feel very much at home and relaxed here which is a compliment to us and a sign that we are doing our job well.”

Website: www.stokebynayland.com

EssexTouristGuide.com 21st November 2011

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