A STATE-of-the-art facility in Newport is aiming to build on Euro 2016’s legacy and bring through the next generation of Welsh football heroes.

The £5 million facility at Dragon Park, funded with investment from Uefa, the Football Association of Wales (FAW), Sport Wales and Fifa, opened three years ago.

Granted a 125-year lease by Newport city council, Dragon Park provides the headquarters for the Welsh Football Trust, the game’s development body.

The centre, which employs 40 members of staff, is intended to aid every branch of the Wales set-up — from the under-12s all the way up – to provide a seamless pathway to Chris Coleman’s senior team.

Neil Ward, chief executive of the Welsh Football Trust, believes Dragon Park will be the “focal point” for bringing through the “conveyor belt” of youngsters inspired by Wales’ heroics at Euro 2016.

“It’s where talented young players will have their first experience with intermediate teams at a top quality facility,” he said.

“It shows our ambition in that they want to be part of this success in the future.

“They’ll be seeing Chris Gunter from Newport and think, ‘I can do it if I have the right opportunity and work hard.’

“What I’m particularly pleased with is the leadership of the council in recognising how sport and football, in particular, is part of the city’s unique selling point.”

As well as having two full-sized premium grass pitches, which have just been re-laid for the coming season, the facility has a 3G pitch, one fibre sand pitch with floodlighting, and a synthetic warm-up and goalkeeping area.

With analysis suites and sports science laboratories in-house, the days of Welsh teams using university facilities are long gone.

Clearly, rather than being content with the emergence of the likes of superstars Gareth Bale and Aaron Ramsey, this was a move by the Football Association of Wales to ensure that high standards are maintained and expected.

Sessions have become more intense, with player pools reduced from 48 to a maximum of 22 at youth level, and infrequent week-long trips away have been replaced by shorter, more regular, retreats at Dragon Park.

With the same philosophy, playing style and medical methods, moving through the international ranks has proved less disconcerting for young players at Dragon Park.

The facility has also acted as a base for some of the biggest names in football to do their coaching badges, including former players Thierry Henry, Patrick Vieira, David Ginola and Sol Campbell.

With this growing reputation, and following Wales’ historic finish at the Euros, Mr Ward believes Welsh players who are eligible for England will now think twice about the country they represent.

“I think it’s [Euro 2016] raised the profile of Wales as a country on the international stage but particularly football,” he said.

“They are more likely to see an opportunity with Wales now and can see Wales can be as competitive as England on the international stage.

“We know now we can compete with some of the top young teams in the world like France, Belgium, Poland and Switzerland.”