England national beach soccer team

National football team
Name = England
Badge =
FIFA Trigramme = ENG
Nickname = The Three Lions
Association = The Football Association
Coach = flagicon|England Luke Kerr
Asst Manager = flagicon|England Jamie O'Rourke

Captain = GC Giancovich
Vice Captain = Andrew Grainger
Most caps = Terry Bowes (52)
Top scorer = GC Giancovich (23)
First game = fb|Germany 6 - 2 England flagicon|England (Vienna, Austria; 8 July 2005)
Largest win = fb|Greece 0 - 4 England flagicon|England (Marseille, France; 26 August 2006)
Largest loss = fb|Brazil 9 - 2 England flagicon|England (Portimao, Portugal; 17 August 2006)
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England plays competitive Beach soccer against European nations.

Traditionally, the home of England Beach Soccer has been in Ryde on the Isle of Wight. Ryde plays host to the biggest Amateur Beach Soccer league in the country and is therefore the natural base for National get togethers. The Isle of Wight produces some of the best talents in the game and currently has a number of its league players representing England at Senior level.

History

President and former coach of the team, John Hawkins, gained control of the National set-up in 2004 and, as a result, the team have been making strides ever since. Hawkins took control of the national coaching set-up after John Scales stepped down after a short stint in charge.

In 2006, England competed in the EBSL, drawing in Group B alongside Poland, Austria and Greece. During that campaign, England went on to win three games. They were narrowly beaten by some of Europes top Beach Soccer teams. In World Cup qualifying, they came close to reaching their first ever World Cup in Brazil, only for Eric Cantona's France narrowly beating them in 8-6.

In 2007, Luke Kerr was appointed Head Coach. Televised appearances in South Africa and Israel enhanced the image of the game and saw some of the team's strongest appearances.

TV Deal

On March 21 2008, EBS announced it had struck a television deal with Nuts TV. The show will focus on a selection of England’s recent International Matches on the Pro circuit and will be shown Monday-Friday at 7pm and 2am from April 7th-May 3rd.

As a result of the subsequent TV deal, England will be formally sponsored by Nuts TV for the 2008 season. Players representing the country in Benidorm for the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers will be seen sporting their logo for the first time.

European Rankings

In January 2008, England were ranked as the 9th best Beach Soccer team in Europe, a considerable achievement considering the time they have been playing on the EBSL tour. Above them in the rankings were Poland, a team England comfortably beat in 2007.

Kits

England have traditionally worn a white shirt with navy shorts, with red shirts and white shorts their choice of kit when playing 'away' from home.

Recent results

2008 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup Qualifiers, May

#15th May 2008 - beachsoccer|ENG 0 – 6 beachsoccer|UKR, Benidorm

FIFA World Cup Qualifying

The European 2008 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup Qualifying draw was made on the 12 March 2008. England were drawn alongside one of the favourites for the tournament Portugal and alongside relative newcomers Estonia and Georgia. The Qualifying campaign itself took place in Benidorm, Spain from 13 May to 18 May 2008.

England's first competitive squad to go on tour for the 2008 World Cup Qualifying campaign was announced on the 28th April 2008. 10 players traveled to Benidorm to play against some of the top European teams in the hope of qualifying for the first World Cup ever held out of Brazil.

After wins against Estonia 2:2(pen. 3:2) and Georgia 4:1 and defeated by former World Champions Portugal in their 3rd Group match 1:6, England was knocked out of the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup 6:0 to the Ukraine on 15 May 2008 in the knockout stage.

The four semi-finalists - namely Italy, Portugal, Russia and Spain - securing their places at the world finals. Spain will travel to Marseille as continental champions after beating Portugal 4-3 in the final.

Squad

The England coaching staff originally named 25 players to attend trials on March 1st. Players were tested on their levels of skill, fitness, stamina and agility to determine who would achieve a final place in the official England Squad for 2008.

On 6/3/08, [http://www.englandbeachsoccer.com] exclusively announced Luke Kerr's first ever England squad, comprising of 16 players. In what EBS called a 'no-nonsense' approach, some of the names instrumental in the old managers plans have been moved aside for some new faces and fresh blood.

The 16 players originally announced have since been cut down to 10, with 2 reserve players, for the World Cup qualifiers in Benidorm.

Goalkeepers

Outfield

The two players on reserve are Jonny Rodriguez Gianpoalo Giancovich.

Coaching Staff

* Head Coach/Manager - Luke Kerr
* Assistant Coach - Jamie O' Rourke

Famous Representatives

England's list of ex-professional footballers to represent the team include John Scales, Darryl Powell, and John Beresford (footballer).

External links

* [http://www.englandbeachsoccer.com/ England Beach Soccer Website]
* [http://www.beachsoccer.com/comp_profiles_team_card.php?idn=19&seccion=2&action=open&id=3&idteam=22 England Team Profile]
* [http://www.englandbeachsoccer.com/news-story.asp?news=212 England Squad]