ONE of the hottest new sports is set to arrive at an Oswestry hotel thanks to some of the town’s sporting stars.

Padel is a new sport that crosses tennis and squash, played on a smaller court and is played in pairs within a closed court with walls, which you can play and bounce off.

Ace Paddle Club is founded by Llanfyllin’s Alex Ramsay with coach brother Eric – who recently departed Manchester United to become the MLS’s youngest-ever permanent head coach – plus professional cricketer Joe Clark with his brother Robbie plus their dad Ian, and will be based at Lion Quays in Weston Rhyn.

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Alex Ramsay, who scouts for Brighton and Hove Albion, says he is looking forward to bringing the sport to Oswestry.

“It’s taken off across the world – we stumbled across it in Spain and fell in love with it there and then,” he said.

“The closest facility to us is Wilmslow in Cheshire, which is quite a trek, so we’ve been planning this for six months and have been playing it across Europe.

“It’s booming in the UK and new courts are popping up almost once a month.

“It will eventually become an Olympic sport, which is what the Lawn Tennis Association wants, but you can see how fun it is for all ages.

“My brother Eric and I, with Joe, Robbie and Ian Clarke, from Oswestry, we’ve been scouring Shropshire for some land to build on.

“We’re thrilled to partner with the Lion Quays. I’m a member there I know first-hand that the facilities are first class”.

“We approached them last year and it went really well so we’re going to take over their tennis courts and members will have access to all of their facilities.

“But we’re going to be a limited company called Ace Paddle Club operating out of the Lion Quays.”

Alex added that they hope all of the founders’ sporting heritage will help bring in plenty of interest.

He added: “The brand already has a good following in the UK and abroad, we have the likes of Marcus Stonis and Chris Woakes following us

"We felt Oswestry is crying out for something like this.

"Padel is one of the most accessible sports in the world and we’re hoping that everyone can benefit from it.

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“We feel this has come at a really good time for the community but also Wrexham and Shrewsbury too.

“It’s going to be a good social space to meet new people too – there’s no ceiling to who can play – and we’ve got so many plans for different groups and activities.”

The group is looking for an April start at the hotel.