Head Coach John Peacock has named his squad for the forthcoming European Qualifiers in Estonia.

UEFA U17 Championship Qualifiers,
England, Estonia, Malta and Portugal,
16-27 October 2007
Estonia

Head Coach John Peacock has named his U17 squad for next month's UEFA Championship Qualifiers in Estonia.

The Young Lions will meet the hosts, Malta and Portugal as they bid to qualify for the Elite Round.

Peacock's side has a familiar look to it with all those selected having already experienced international football, including Tottenham's highly regarded midfielder Dean Parrett and Crystal Palace starlet John Bostock.

Andros Townsend, another Spurs player, has been in excellent goalscoring form and Peacock will hope he and Newcastle forward Ryan Donaldson can fire England through.

Fulham goalkeeper Wesley Foderingham, who travelled to Korea for the recent U17 World Cup, will battle Declan Rudd for the number one jersey.

The England youngsters enjoyed a mixed first year on the international scene, which came at Under-16 level.

They began well by scooping the Victory Shield following an excellent 2-1 win over Scotland in December.

A 3-1 defeat in Slovenia followed two months later but the Lions picked themselves up to beat the Republic of Ireland and France en route to the Final of the Montiagu Tournament. Unfortunately, it proved a step too far as Germany ran out 2-0 winners.

But England finished on a bright note by beating Spain 1-0 in front of more than 28,000 at the new Wembley Stadium.

In a change from recent seasons where the top seeds were given a bye, all teams other than the hosts will begin their campaign at the Qualifying Round. The top two sides in each group will earn a place in the Elite Round while the best two third placed teams will also progress.

England will be confident of progressing through after an encouraging start to the season, which began with the Nordic Championships where they finished third.

The youngsters were unbeaten in August's International Tournament, with a 6-1 win against Northern Ireland and a 3-0 triumph over Italy proof of their talent.

Peacock will be hoping England can replicate that form next month.

 

* Replaced Declan Rudd
** Replaced Kyle Bartley