Jon Cree from St Albans has been selected as the lead strength and conditioning coach for the England C football team.

A Middlesex University Strength and Conditioning course leader, Cree will be teaming up with the players from the Football Conference to help them keep healthy and enhance their performance.

Paul Fairclough, manager of the England C team and previously of Barnet FC, approached Cree after seeing the work he’d done with other professional clubs.

The university’s success in sports science has led to many professional sports clubs and teams forming partnerships with Middlesex to help their athletes, including QPR, Charlton Athletic, the British Fencing team and Saracens RFC. Cree also acts a strength and conditioning coach for Olympic fencer James Davis.

“In my role I will be monitoring players throughout their training and matches. For instance, I’ll be monitoring their heart rates, recording the distance a player covers during training and games and noting markers of performance,” he said.

“All this information is key, not only to the England C coach to enable them select their very best team, but also to the managers of the teams the players have come from.”

These partnerships also offer Middlesex Strength and Conditioning students valuable opportunities to experience the world of elite sport, with a number of them going on to gain jobs and placements within these clubs and teams.

“Having met up with the squad on a couple of occasions now, they are all young and enthusiastic and are keen to learn more about how my work can enhance their performance,” added Cree.