Tranmere’s propsed new training facility at Woodchurch can benefit Wirral sporting community

Aug 10 2011 by Nick Hilton, Liverpool Daily Post

TRANMERE’S professional footballers and the Wirral sporting community will share in the benefits of the new training facility the club wants to build at Woodchurch.

Football and hockey pitches will be made available to the public at the new complex on the current site of the Woodchurch Leisure Centre, according to the outline proposals.

Rovers, meanwhile, will be able to move all of their training operations to Woodchurch where the new set-up will include changing rooms, physio and medical facilities, a largeŠhealth and fitness centre and new offices for coaching and administrative staff.

The day-to-day routine for Tranmere players and staff is currently split between two venues. Training for senior and youth players takes place atŠa leasedŠsite at Raby Vale near Clatterbridge but they must return to Prenton Park to shower and change. Medical facilities, a small gym and administrative offices are also housed at Prenton Park.

Tranmere have submittedŠtwoŠlinked planning applications to Wirral Council. The first is to develop 90 homes on the Ingleborough Road training ground near Prenton Park, which is used by the club’s centre of excellence teams at evenings and weekends. Ingleborough Road was formerly the site of the Birkenhead Institute schoolŠplaying fields.

Some of the cash generated by the development will be used to fund the project at Woodchurch. The rest is to be ploughed back into the League One club, which has debts of more than £5million to chairman and controlling shareholder Peter Johnson.