Academy’s pre-season tour announced

From July 30 to August 7, academy players of all age groups and staff will be travelling to Scotland for a pre-season tour.

This will give young Spireites the chance to broaden their horizons, taking in the sights, and playing football with the best of the best in Scotland.

So, what’s the plan? Chesterfield U16s, U17s, U19s and U21s will be playing against four Scottish clubs, testing themselves against teams from different divisions.

Fifty players and ten staff members will journey up to Scotland.

Based at the University of Stirling, which was designated as Scotland’s University for Sporting Excellence in 2008 and was once used as Hibernian’s training centre, the youngsters will train before travelling to various venues across Scotland.

Many big names from all types of sports have trained at the university. From Gordon Reid to Jamie and Andy Murray, it has seen it all. It will be a great opportunity for the players to train in some of the best facilities.

In their time in Scotland, the young Spireites will take on Dundee, Stenhousemuir, Falkirk, Dunfermline Athletic and Hibernian, as they look to develop as players and push themselves by taking on tough opposition.

The trip to Scotland also gives the club a chance to explore the beginning of their relationship with Stenhousemuir, with talks set in motion in recent weeks.

The academy will be taking part in the Edinburgh Cup. The tournament has welcomed thousands of youth players from across the country since 2017 and this year is no different.

The plan is to take all age groups, from U9s to U16s, to the Cup, with the excitement of playing against some big names. Celtic, Rangers, Dundee and Sunderland have all sent youth teams to the Edinburgh Cup.

This is a very exciting time to be a young Spireite. Definitely not a pre-season tour to miss out on!