Loughborough Uni to help Leicester City prepare for the Championship

[davieG]

Jun 5 2009 by Richard Rush, Loughborough Echo

AS LEICESTER City and manager Nigel Pearson begin their preparations for life in the Coca Cola Championship it’s likely Loughborough University could provide a pivotal role.

A few weeks ago you would have read in the Echo that the county’s only professional side and the world famous University had signed a ‘Memorandum of Understanding’.

But stripping away all that management speak and the David Brent-esque title, what exactly does a ‘Memorandum of Understanding’ entail?

How is the local University set to help the Foxes challenge for a Premier League spot following last year’s winning of League One?

Leicester City themselves have had a number of links over the years with other sporting associations such as Indian side East Bengal and Irish outfit Cork City which to an outsiders’ view may appear to have made little impact for the club or their partners other than the from initial good publicity which is generated by such ventures.

This link up however may have a far more direct effect on the 1st XI come August 8 when the new season starts, not least because rather than leave it to the numerous staff at the Walkers Stadium, manager Pearson personally headed the negotiations with the University himself.

He can’t remember how many managers he’s worked under recently, but the club’s physio David Rennie is relishing working under the current incumbent of the Filbert Way hot seat who takes sports science so seriously.

“As a club we are fairly open to new ideas and it came about after a meeting between myself, Nigel and Paul Boulson,” Rennie said. “We hope to get enlightenment from their studies, we hope to be able to use their testing facilities and increase our scientific knowledge. It will be good for both parties to drive through their sports science initiatives in an applied working environment.

“We have good facilities at Belvoir Drive, five sports scientists at the club and three full time physios but we don’t have the laboratory facilities that they have in Loughborough.

“We are always looking at ways to make the players more robust and of speeding up their recovery when they do get injured. At Loughborough we could have more opportunity to evaluate the effects of training and the recovery process from injuries more closely.”

Professor Mike Gleeson of Loughborough University is excited by the idea.

“It’s a benefit to both sides,” he said. “The club are looking to be at the forefront of sports science and nutrition and they know that we have a number of experts on the matter.

“We have a few young people working with them. One of the things we can do is provide them with advice and provide them with results from cutting edge equipment and studies.

“I think they feel that this is something that they can do that will give them an advantage over other clubs.

“Leicester provide us with a number of fit young men from the first team downwards who may be very useful subjects to us in terms of studying them. Then we can do the best we can to help their squad develop.

“Our school is very broad and we include everything from nutritionists, psychology, coaches and physiology so there is a wide range of things we can help them with.

“Also Leicester City and Milan Mandaric have agreed to fund a Phd studentship to work at the club in the future.”

Leicester recently announced they would be selling their Belvoir Drive training ground. When the Echo contacted them to ask if they might be relocating the training of the players permanently to Loughborough the club remained tight-lipped.

What’s certain though is that Pearson is a big fan of using the latest technology to get the best out of his players.

“Nigel does take more of an interest in sports science than other regimes I’ve worked under,” Rennie continued. “He is the first manager that allows us to question the way we and the players work in an attempt to get an improvement out of us.

“He never takes anything for granted. He questions everything that we do with sports science and often goes with his gut feeling when decisions need to be made.

“It’s great from a physio’s point of view that we have a manager thinking like this and the university can take these ideas further.

“Everything boils down to the club having a professional atmosphere and installing that drive and the winning mentality throughout the club.

“We haven’t had that mentality at times previously but that also comes from a lot of other factors.”

[Granno]

Yet another demonstration of how professional Pearson is.

[hairy]

Do you think this is the 'state of the art training facilities' they talked about when putting the current training ground on the market?

[davieG]

Do you think this is the 'state of the art training facilities' they talked about when putting the current training ground on the market?

Well at least the Loughboro' Echo asked the question unlike the Mockery.

Leicester recently announced they would be selling their Belvoir Drive training ground. When the Echo contacted them to ask if they might be relocating the training of the players permanently to Loughborough the club remained tight-lipped.

[hairy]

Well at least the Loughboro' Echo asked the question unlike the Mockery.

Sorry I had stopped reading before I got to that bit. Its too hot for reading

Its good that the club (Milan) can get some money in, cut costs and support a local university. Lets just hope they get on and the club aren't ousted with nowhere to go. Suppose I could let Glen Rec to them for a small fee.

[Fez of Mahrez]

That really is a superb article. Reads a bit like he's a City fan. Wonder if he is or not.

[davieG]

That really is a superb article. Reads a bit like he's a City fan. Wonder if he is or not.

Richard Rush, probably a he then

[Red Leicester]

"It will be good for both parties to drive through their sports science initiatives in an applied working environment." = "We are going to let their student experiment on us."

Would you let a bunch of people like Smuts loose on the team?

It doesn't bear thinking about.

[Tevez]

I knew Loughborough would be in the plans. Great move if they do it and great move by joining up with the best Sport and Sport Science Uni in the UK.

[Jace]

good move should of been concidered years ago

[willchafer]

this sort of thing will do wonders for our young players in the long term and develop them into stronger and fitter plays...raising a bar at leaucester and maybe attracting good youngsters to join

[demon_dog]

No big surprise that Loughborough Uni and City get together to work to improve players performance.

Let's face it most of our top athletes have trained there.

You never know they may be able to get Psssh to run the 100 metres in record time!

[Ultra]

this sort of thing will do wonders for our young players in the long term and develop them into stronger and fitter plays...raising a bar at leaucester and maybe attracting good youngsters to join

Leaucester?

[Corky]

Leaucester?

Merger with Beaumont Leys

[Monk]

I went to Loughborough for 4 years - the sports facilities are superb and the level of knowledge in the Sports Science department is unparalelled in this area of the country, if not the entire country. Hopefully we can reap some benefits from this.

[Flynny]

Why is the standard of journalism in the Loughborough Echo higher than the Mercury? Great article. I wish the club or our paper had the thought/bollocks respectively to put information like this out there.

[Fox in a Box]

I live and work in the boro, and I will state this is a massive move forward in fitness thinking for the club.

http://www.lboro.ac.uk/departments/ssehs/

[Thracian]

Well at least the Loughboro' Echo asked the question unlike the Mockery.

Having worked for both that doesn't surprise me. I quite liked the answer too.

[Thracian]

Why is the standard of journalism in the Loughborough Echo higher than the Mercury? Great article. I wish the club or our paper had the thought/bollocks respectively to put information like this out there.

I can guess why. When I went there as Sports Editor, the Echo paid double the salary I was on at the Mercury and provided a wonderful working environment.

They had an editor and staff who had their ears to everything that happened in the town and the firm gave their staff licence and, indeed, encouragement to do outside freelance work which was a major perk set up by the then editor Charlie Harriss and which meant I did more column inches per week for the nationals and dailies (on top of Echo work) than I ever did at the Mercury.

The combination of those wages and benefits meant that, although a much smaller outfit, the Echo journalists were seriously looked after and each thoroughly enjoyed their job. The Echo had brilliant contacts and, because all its staff were familiar with the issues, they were well respected and trusted, as was the paper.

Staff were valued and he company showed it in all sorts of ways. There was such a positive and happy atmosphere.

I remember approaching the boss about a loan for a car. How much do you want he asked. I told him and the editor instantly knew what car I wanted to buy I asked him how and he said "cos I'd have wanted that car too if I'd been your age." He gave me the money, hoped I "had fun" and told me to pay him back as and when I could. Nothing was ever written down.

John Rippin later became editor and was there for years too. Used to drive a TVR in local rallies. Great bloke. The place had continuity and a whole lot of soul. They and the Peterborough Evening Telegraph (part of EMAP) were a class apart as employers, particularly their man management. I hear how some staff are treated today and wince.

[renards]

I can guess why. When I went there as Sports Editor, the Echo paid double the salary I was on at the Mercury and provided a wonderful working environment.

They had an editor and staff who had their ears to everything that happened in the town and the firm gave their staff licence and, indeed, encouragement to do outside freelance work which was a major perk set up by the then editor Charlie Harriss and which meant I did more column inches per week for the nationals and dailies (on top of Echo work) than I ever did at the Mercury.

The combination of those wages and benefits meant that, although a much smaller outfit, the Echo journalists were seriously looked after and each thoroughly enjoyed their job. The Echo had brilliant contacts and, because all its staff were familiar with the issues, they were well respected and trusted, as was the paper.

Staff were valued and he company showed it in all sorts of ways. There was such a positive and happy atmosphere.

I remember approaching the boss about a loan for a car. How much do you want he asked. I told him and the editor instantly knew what car I wanted to buy I asked him how and he said "cos I'd have wanted that car too if I'd been your age." He gave me the money, hoped I "had fun" and told me to pay him back as and when I could. Nothing was ever written down. John Rippin later became editor and was there for years too. Used to drive a TVR in local rallies. Great bloke. The place had continuity and a whole lot of soul. They and the Peterborough Evening Telegraph (part of EMAP) were a class apart as employers, particularly their man management. I hear how some staff are treated today and wince.

Did he ever get the money?

[renards]

Bit of an old chestnut.

Leic are now in advanced talks with Lough uni to use their new facilities that inc inc 7 pitches, canteen catering for players ala B Drive semi pro ground for uni team inc stands etc

No confirmation as yet if they will ship all over there, but only a matter of time

ANo suprise, aways looked as if it would happen