England U19 v Poland U19
International U19 Friendly
7.45pm, 6 February 2007
The Fitness First Stadium at Dean Court, AFC Bournemouth
Ticket Hotline 08700 340380
Group Booking Forms - Click Here

Brian Eastick has named his England U19s squad for the friendly with Poland at Bournemouth in February, which will form the first test of 2007 for the Young Lions.

Everton striker James Vaughan retains his place after scoring the winner in the last encounter of 2006, while Hogan Ephraim of West Ham, Ray Jones of QPR and Danny Haynes of Ipswich complete the attacking options on show.

Although it will be the first game of 2007 for Brian Eastick's side, it will be the sixth match this season for this group of players who are all building on first team experience with their clubs.

"Quite a few of the players you will see in action against Poland have now had first team football experience. James Vaughan at Everton, Giles Barnes at Derby, Fabrice Muamba on loan at Birmingham, Michael Mancienne on loan at QPR, Mark Little and Mark Davies at Wolves, Ray Jones at QPR, Danny Haynes at Ipswich and of course Ryan Bertrand who had a loan spell at Bournemouth are a few examples.

"Great credit for their development must go to the staff that work with them on a daily basis in their club environment. Although they all still have a long way to go it does show that up and down the country there is a lot of good work going on in Academies and Centres of Excellence."

The friendly with Poland at Bournemouth is the first step in the preparation for the UEFA European U19 Championship Qualifiers in May, especially given the calibre of opponents that the Young Lions are set to face.

Holland, Russia and Czech Republic have been drawn alongside England, and while the games will be played in this country Brian is expecting the group to be very competitive.

"To be perfectly honest it is a very difficult draw," Brian told TheFA.com.

"However, I am confident that if the players selected perform at their best both individually and collectively then there is no reason why we should not progress to the finals in Austria next July.

"This would give some of our best young players in England the opportunity to test themselves against the very best countries in Europe, a great experience hopefully not to be missed."

Tickets are on sale for the U19 international on Friday from the Ticket Hotline on 08700 340380. Advance tickets are just £3 for adults (£5 on matchday) and £1 for under-16s and OAPs. Group discounts are available from TheFA.com

The squad:

Name

DOB

Club

Jamie Annerson

21.06.1988

Sheffield United

Giles Barnes

05.08.1988

Derby County

Ryan Bertrand

05.08.1989

Chelsea

David Button

27.02.1989

Tottenham Hotspur

Mark Davies

18.02.1988

Wolverhampton Wanderers

Hogan Ephraim

31.03.1988

West Ham United (on loan at Colchester)

Adam Hammill

25.01.1988

Liverpool

Danny Haynes

19.01.1988

Ipswich Town

Seb Hines

29.05.1988

Middlesbrough

Rossi Jarvis

11.03.1988

Norwich City

Michael Johnson

24.02.1988

Manchester City

Ray Jones

28.08.1988

Queens Park Rangers

Mark Little

20.08.1988

Wolverhampton Wanderers

Michael Mancienne

08.01.1988

Chelsea (on loan to QPR)

Fabrice Muamba

06.04.1988

Arsenal (on loan to Birmingham City)

Elliot Omozusi

15.12.1988

Fulham

Robert Threlfall

28.11.1988

Liverpool

James Vaughan

14..07.1988

Everton