A group of coaches and administrators from Sliema Wanderers Football Nursery are currently on a week-long Leonardo da Vinci mobility visit which is supported by Leicestershire & Rutland County FA.

On arrival the group attended the FA Community Shield match between Manchester City and Chelsea. On Monday the group was the first set of Maltese nationals to set step in the world-class facility of the English FA Development Centre – St George’s Park in Burton Derbyshire which will be inaugurated on 15th August.

The group had the opportunity to tour the entire complex which consists of a number of training pitches including a full-size indoor 3-G pitch which is a replica of Wembley Stadium, an indoor sports hall, a sports medicine and science centre and two top-notch hotels amongst others. Participants then visited the impressive Foxton Locks.

The group also attended an FA Level 1 course and had an intensive team-building session at Avalance Adventure Club. This included an interactive session on Club Development which was delivered by Marion Hayton and various practical team-building activities.

Activities like a First-aid in Sports course, a visit to a professional and a semi-professional club together with interaction with ethnic communities are also scheduled for this week.

This visit is funded by the Leonardo da Vinci programme as part of the Lifelong Learning Programme supported by the European Commission.