Published by Alexander Chandy
Hartlepool United are delighted to announce a new partnership with Durham University that will see the club train at the recently opened £32 million Maiden Castle Sports and Wellbeing Park.
The news follows on from the club's achievement of being promoted back into the Football League and it has been identified as a key step toward creating infrastructure that supports a leading football league environment and status.
Maiden Castle Sports and Wellbeing Park has been transformed in recent years with multi-million pound investment and is now widely regarded as a world-class facility including: 5 artificial pitches; 7 grass pitches; an 8 lane floodlit track; a 12 court indoor sports hall; 3 gyms including designated space for performance teams and athletes: medical suites, rehabilitation pool and cryochamber; athlete areas; and sporting office hub.
As well as facility use the partnership will also see the two organisations working together with student placement opportunities, coaching integration and sports science collaboration.
Raj Singh, Chairman of Hartlepool United, commented:
“Having the new Maiden Castle site as a training base alongside the Durham University partnership is a huge coup for us. It's something that Lee Rust has been working on for quite a while and I'm delighted to get there with it”
“We've discussed longer term aspirations with the local authority around training facilities being based in the town and we'll absolutely continue to work toward that, but at this stage it was important to secure the here and now. As of this week we will be training at one of the best facilities in the north east”
Lee Rust, Executive Advisor to Hartlepool United, added:
“It's been a pleasure working with Mark Brian and the Durham University staff over recent months to put this together and I'm sure it will be a great partnership for both organisations going forward.”
“The investment into Maiden Castle in recent years has been huge and it really shows. It will provide a truly first-class environment for players and staff on a daily basis. Durham is also one of the top universities in the country with a global brand and the collaboration opportunities are really exciting for the club to be able access.”
Mark Brian, Head of Sport and Activity for Durham University, commented:
“Firstly I'd like to congratulate Hartlepool on their promotion to the English Football League, which is a fantastic achievement.”
“We believe this new partnership will be of real benefit for both parties and we're delighted that our new state of the art sports facilities will be shared by a professional men's football team. We are confident that this will add real value to their performance on the pitch.”
“We are also excited to work with the Manager and his team to explore ways in which we can strengthen a partnership and provide opportunities for Hartlepool's players and coaching staff to engage with our student community and vice versa.”
“All in all we are delighted to be working with the club and developing what will be an incredible sporting environment for all concerned.”