Mossley sign up to new academy

SIGNED UP: Mossley directors Steve Tague (left) and Harry Hulmes (centre) are joined by Darren Royle, director of the new Evo-Stik Northern Premier League Football Aacdemy.

MOSSLEY FC have officially signed up to the Evo-Stik Northern Premier League Football Academy.

The Lilywhites’ Seel Park stadium is one of a group of centres selected to host the pioneering new Academy course for 16 to 18-year-old students from Tameside and Oldham.

The Evo-Stik Northern Premier League has also become the first in English football to launch a 15-team youth league and academy aimed at combining football with further education.

Officially sanctioned by the Football Association, Seel Park is set to be one of the NPL venues staging the Academy course, which is being run in partnership with Manchester College.

The exciting course will see local youngsters aged 16-18 studying for a BTEC Level 1, 2 or 3 National Diploma in Sport, as well as working with FA and UEFA licensed coaches on a daily basis and competing in the unique and newly-formed Evo-Stik NPL Academy League. The Mossley team will also feature in the FA Youth Cup.

Darren Royle, the Evo-Stik NPL Football Academy director and son of legendary Athletic manager Joe, said: “These are exciting times for potential students in the area.”

The programme will run alongside existing youth set-ups at participating clubs, offering the best of each year’s intake the chance to play senior non-league football at Mossley and the 14 other clubs.

An open day for prospective students will take place at Seel Park on Thursday, January 29, starting at 7pm. See www.nplfa.co.uk for information.