FOUR teenage lacrosse players have had to raise thousands of pounds for the honour of representing their country at the world championships.

Alan Boyle, Tom Bailey, and Pete Hayes, all aged 19, and Anthony Hayes, 18, were delighted when they were selected for the England under-19 team to compete in Canada in July.

They had been warned that funding might be a problem, but they were stunned to learn they will have to cough up £4,000 each.

Lacrosse is considered a development sport and funded at club level. It is not recognised as an Olympic sport, so players cannot get funding from UK Sport for international events.

Stockport Labour MP Ann Coffey has now taken up the case and is calling for the funding rules to be changed.

The lads and their parents have so far managed to raise about £20,000 by holding raffles, auctions, dinner dances and other functions.

Alan Boyle, from Woodsmoor, who works in the medical records department at Stepping Hill Hospital, said: "I felt incredibly proud to be picked to play for my country and I am really looking forward to the world championships.

Support

"We had been told about the funding but we had not been given a figure as to how much it would cost. I totally disagree with the way the sport is funded because there should be support in lacrosse, as there is in other sports, for those chosen to represent their country."

His father Alan said: "They have had to work full time to help pay for the honour of representing their country in Canada.

"Obviously, any fund raising by the parents committee will help to offset the high cost of preparing and sending this elite squad of young men to play for England, but this is only a small portion of the overall costs involved."

Ms Coffey has raised the issue in the Commons and won an agreement from sports minister Gerry Sutcliffe to review the rules.

She said: "In the current review of Sport England, I asked the minister to consider introducing flexibility in its funding remit so that a sport that has financial support at club level is also properly funded at international level."

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