Work is well under way, and moving fast, as Oxford United’s new Training Complex takes shape.
United formally moved out of their previous training base at the Oxford Sports and Social Club this week. The club moved there, their first permanent training ground, in 2011 and used the former social club and changing rooms for the first and youth teams initially, with the Academy housed in temporary buildings on the same site.
The Social Club was demolished last summer and the first team, youth team and Academy had been sharing the temporary buildings this season but this week saw staff working hard to move equipment out of the buildings and in to storage for the summer.
Yesterday saw the bulldozers move in to flatten the site and prepare it for an expansion of the BMW MINI factory.
When the first team report back in June they will do so a few hundred yards further along the Horspath Road where a fantastic new training complex is taking shape. United have worked with Oxford City Council and Fusion and the new base will feature six pitches plus a 3G pitch and will be home to the first team, youth team, Under 23 side and Academy programme.
Alongside the new pitches will be new changing rooms, a gym, kitchens, dining room, laundry and storage facilities as well as offices and video analysis suites
The scholars will have new, larger classrooms, there will be treatment rooms, interview rooms for the media, meeting rooms and storage facilities for the maintenance crew.
With construction still under way the site is closed to the public right now but the players will report there in late June when they come back for pre-season ahead of the tour of Ireland, announced yesterday.