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European Under-17 Championships Draw Made
Written by Newcastle Utd
Paul Woolston is hoping to help England retain the European Under-17 Championships trophy after the draw for this summer's tournament was made
By Dan King - Newcastle United Digital Editor
The draw for this summer's UEFA European Under-17 Championships in Bulgaria was made on Thursday afternoon, with holders England placed in Group D alongside Republic of Ireland, Holland and Italy.
Newcastle United goalkeeper Paul Woolston is set to be named in John Peacock's squad for the finals, which take place between 6th May and 22nd May, having been the Young Lions' regular number one during the qualifying campaign.
He started all three of their first round of qualifying matches in October, then played in Elite qualifying round victories over Norway and Slovenia last month as England secured their place at the finals with a 100 per cent record.
And the North Shields-born 16-year-old is hoping to follow in the footsteps of fellow Magpies keeper Freddie Woodman, who was between the posts as England won the tournament in Malta last May. Adam Armstrong also played a key role in the Young Lions' success in 2014.
"Freddie was the hero in the final last year when it went to a penalty shoot-out and I wouldn't mind repeating what he did - although hopefully we won't need penalties this time," Woolston told nufc.co.uk. "We're the holders so we're going to try and retain the trophy.
"It will be difficult but everybody in the team will be up for it.
"It's a tough group, especially with Holland in there who beat us at the Algarve Tournament recently, but we'll be keen to make up for that at the Euros."
This year, the tournament has been expanded to include 16 teams. It will also act as a qualifier for the FIFA Under-17 World Cup in Chile, which will take place between October and November.
Woolston made headlines last season when he made his Barclays Under-21 Premier League debut for Newcastle while still at school and kept a clean sheet in a 1-0 win over Manchester United.
The full draw for the UEFA European Under-17 Championships finals is:
Group A: Bulgaria, Croatia, Spain, Austria
Group B: Czech Republic, Slovenia, Belgium, Germany
Group C: Greece, Russia, Scotland, France
Group D: Republic of Ireland, Netherlands, Italy, England