Whilst Italy will be gearing up to take part in the 2004 Athens Olympics, Fairclough will be running the rule over players who will come into consideration for this year’s Four Nations Tournament.

A record crowd of 3,446 saw Shropshire based Sam Ricketts and Luke Rodgers score the goals that held the Belgians to a 2-2 draw at Darlington in November, a result that saw Fairclough hail his players as ‘warriors’.

Ricketts and Rodgers retain their places to ensure that local fans should be out in force in a fortnight’s time; another seven players from the squad that faced Belgium, including Telford’s Chris Murphy are on standby.

Nine new caps are likely to be awarded at the New Bucks Head, with the most notable being the call-up of Scarborough midfielder Scott Kerr.

Manager Paul Fairclough said: “I was the studio guest of Sky Sports for the televised FA Cup game between Scarborough and Chelsea, and I thought Scott was outstanding.

“I nominated him as man-of-the-match, a view shared by the nation’s media who covered the game, and he thoroughly deserved his call-up, after more than matching the likes of Frank Lampard and World Cup winner Emmanuel Petit in the Chelsea midfield.”

Of the two local based players in the squad, Paul said: "Sam Ricketts did very well for us against Belgium in November, and he will be on a real crest of a wave due to Telford’s FA Cup run.

“Luke Rodgers was a real leader for us in the Belgium match, and although he has been out injured for quite a period, I went and saw him at the weekend and was very pleased with his performance.”

He also had words of encouragement for Telford’s Chris Murphy. "Chris has been very unlucky, as a number of the forward players that have been selected above him have also been playing very well recently. Chris did himself proud against Belgium, is still young, and could yet have a part to play in the Italy game, if injuries deprive me of any of my first sixteen.”

Of the new call-ups, Adam Miller, Karl Murray and James Coppinger catch the eye for varying reasons.

“Adam was a thorn in my side when he was at Canvey and he helped put Stevenage out of The FA Trophy when I was at Broadhall Way”, said Paul.

“It could be said that he lost his way for a period after leaving Canvey, but I was always thinking that ‘the cream rises to the top’, and under Terry Brown at Aldershot, who is great at getting the best out of players, Adam has a real chance to get himself into The Football League.”

“I first saw James Coppinger when he was coming to terms with relegation at Exeter. He has really knuckled down this season and put in a string of wonderful performances, and his versatility and skill mean that he can play up front, behind the front two or wide on the right.

“For Karl Murray, it should be a great occasion, and proves that players should never give up. I watched him play a number of times at Shrewsbury and had always been impressed, but he fell down the pecking order and then seemed to disappear out of the game for a brief period.

“He re-appeared at Woking at the beginning of 2004. I saw him play and after speaking to Glenn Cockerill, he deserves his chance to show me - and maybe other people - what he can do.”

Following a record crowd at Darlington, and The FA's decision to again make admission free to the Italy game, Paul issued a rallying call to football fans in Shropshire and across the country:

“Having a big crowd behind the players was a huge boost in our last game, and resulted in our lads coming back twice from behind against players who could represent Belgium in the 2006 World Cup qualifying round.

“On 11 February I would hope that all football fans and families who want to enjoy a great game of football come out in force to support the whole team, as well as Sam and Luke who will be local England heroes.

“A growing number of players are using this team as the launchpad into League football, and you may well see some of the future stars of English football at Telford, as we attempt to beat the best young talent in Italian football.”

Kick-off on Wednesday 11 February is 7.45pm, and admission is free.

England National Game XI - Squad v Italy

 

Player

Club

Jon Kennedy (GK)

Accrington Stanley FC

James Bittner  (GK)

Exeter City FC

Anthony Charles

Farnborough Town FC

David Perkins

Morecambe FC

Jon Boardman

Woking FC

Danny Collins

Chester City FC

Peter Cavanagh

Accrington Stanley FC

Gareth Sheldon

Exeter City FC

Sam Ricketts

Telford United FC

Adam Miller

Aldershot Town FC

Scott Kerr

Scarborough FC

Robert Purdie

Hereford United FC

Luke Rodgers

Shrewsbury Town FC

Roscoe D’Sane

Aldershot Town FC

Karl Murray

Woking FC

James Coppinger

Exeter City FC