🚧 NSCG | College students get England call up
Your browser is unsupported and may have security vulnerabilities! Upgrade to a newer browser to experience this site in all it's glory.
Skip to main content

25th January 2019

Five highly talented students from the Newcastle and Stafford Colleges Group (NSCG) Academy of Sport are celebrating after being called up to represent the English Colleges Football Association (ECFA) national team.

Ecfa England 28

NSCG Andy Griffin Football Academy (AGFA) students Ethan Cartwright, Beth Roberts, Charlotte Clarke, Lexie Harrison and Courtney Ward were nominated for the highly competitive selection process by Head Coach, Andy Griffin based upon their impressive match performances and commitment within the Academy.

Competing for places in the men’s and women’s national team, all students underwent a rigorous selection process at St George’s Park and Lilleshall National Sports Centre, which saw them pitted against hundreds of other young hopefuls from all over the country.

Midfielder Ethan, who qualified for the team last year, received the news he would once again join the final 25-man ECFA squad, who will next face Australia on Monday 28 January in Milton Keynes.

He said: “The College has supported me and given me a great platform to showcase my talents at a national and international level. I’d highly recommend joining the Andy Griffin Football Academy because the standard of every player is really high, training is hard but effective and designed to help you reach your full potential.”

Left-back Beth, goalkeeper Charlotte, midfielder Lexie and right-back Courtney will next compete on Wednesday 30 January, when the England ECFA Women’s U18s take on Ipswich Town FC in the FA Women’s Superleague, hosted at Loughborough College.

All five players will also take part in the prestigious Roma Caput Mundi Tournament in Italy this February, facing teams from around the world.

Andy Griffin, Head Coach of the AGFA squad said: “The achievements of these players really showcase the best of what the Andy Griffin Football Academy has to offer in developing grassroots footballing talent. Our purpose is to create these types of opportunities for our players, to ultimately help them land either a semi-professional or professional football contract.”

David Sutton, Academy of Sport Manager said: “With players of this quality coming through the Academy, developing their skills and being recognised by national squads, it’s easy to see why NSCG is Staffordshire’s top sporting college.”

He added: “The ECFA competition offers an incredible opportunity for these students to showcase their talents at a national and international level. We are all immensely proud of their achievements so far, we wish them the best of luck in their upcoming matches and we will be supporting them all the way.”

The NSCG Academy of Sport is open to students at both Newcastle College and Stafford College who want to compete, coach, keep fit or simply have fun. There are a number of competitive programmes including; football, basketball, netball, athletics, rugby, volleyball and badminton.

If you would like to learn more about the Andy Griffin Football Academy and NSCG Academy of Sport click here.