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Newcastle United’s ambitious plans for a new state-of-the-art training ground have been unanimously approved by planners.

The Magpies had applied to demolish their existing Darsley Park complex, in Benton, and replace it with a 3,600sq-m centre, complete with gym, swimming pool, hydrotherapy pool, living and dining areas and outdoor barbecue zone.

And on Tuesday North Tyneside Council’s planning committee waved through the proposal without debate - unanimously voting in favour of giving the multi-million pound project the greenlight.

“Top players and top teams need top training and medical facilities,” said former NUFC director of football Joe Kinnear, when he unveiled the plans.

“The current training ground has served the club very well but the new complex will give the club all of the ingredients that it needs to continue maintaining and enhancing the performance of elite footballers.

“It will also be an added attraction when it is looking to recruit players.”

(Image: www.nufc.co.uk)

The hope is that the new 100m long, 40m wide and 8m high cross laminated timber building, built using wood sourced from sustainable forests and finished with rain screen cladding, will put Newcastle’s facilities on a par with those of Premier League rivals such as Manchester City and Arsenal.

As well as the features fans may expect of a football club’s training ground, the plans also include provision for a number of private prayer rooms.

In recent years Newcastle United have bought a number of Muslim players, including ex-striker Demba Ba, former winger Hatem Ben Arfa, and existing players Papiss Cisse and Cheick Tiote, who could be given the option to use the rooms - though players of all religions would be accommodated for by the club.

(Image: www.nufc.co.uk)

Nine trees will be cut down to make way for the new building and the car park will be redesigned.

Though it is only a short distance from Longbenton Medieval village, no archaeological investigations were required prior to planning consideration after the Tyne and Wear Archaeology Officer, who was consulted, said they were not needed.

The officer said that though there was evidence of ridge and furrow earthworks, indicating medieval ploughing, and the possibility of buried prehistoric or Roman remains recorded as recently as 2002, an “archaeological watching brief” that had twice been recommended had not been carried out and anything of value would have likely been destroyed or disturbed when the car park was created in 2003.