Great Britain's Jack Rutter will make his third Paralympic Games appearance in football seven-a-side at Rio 2016  ©onEdition

The 14 athletes who will compete for Great Britain in football seven-a-side at the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games have today been announced.

All but two of the team members will make their Paralympic debut with just former Everton FC academy player Michael Barker and Scottish veteran Jonathan Paterson returning from London 2012 to compete in their third Games.

Among the new players are former Birmingham City FC player Jack Rutter and Sean Highdale, who previously played for Liverpool FC and also represented England at under-16 level.

Both Rutter and Highdale joined the national football seven-a-side teams after acquiring brain injuries.

The squad also features former Tranmere Rovers forward Ollie Nugent, who currently plays for Chester FC.

The ParalympicsGB team will be drawn from several of the home nations, with players from the English, Scottish and Northern Irish squads - many of whom competed internationally for their home nations at recent World and European Championships.

Rutter, captain of the team and one of the faces of the "Supercharge ParalympicsGB" campaign to galvanise public support for the team, said: "There is no greater honour than to represent your country on the international stage and it’s a proud moment for me today to be announced as captain of this team of outstanding players.

"We’ve come together to create a really competitive force and we believe we’re up there with the best teams in the world.

"We’re going out to Rio to make everyone back at home proud, and I hope the nation will Supercharge the team to some truly memorable performances."

The squad also features Chester FC's Ollie Nugent
The squad also features Chester FC's Ollie Nugent ©onEdition

Paterson, who first made his Paralympic debut in Beijing, added: "This will be my third Paralympic Games and I don’t think we’ve ever been stronger.

"The amount of progress we’ve made throughout this cycle has been impressive, and it’s great to have new faces on the team who have created greater strength in depth.

"I can’t wait to step on to the pitch for the first time in Rio."

Completing the line-up is Emyle Rudder, Matt Crossen, Giles Moore, Ryan Kay, Liam Irons, Martin Hickman, David Porcher, James Blackwell and David Leavy.

"I am really proud to lead these players as we prepare to compete at the Rio Paralympics, it’s a fantastic opportunity to showcase this sport and I believe their hard work will pay dividends at the Games," said team leader Jeff Davis.

"The top teams are incredibly competitive and there will be no easy matches, but we feel ready to take on the challenge."

Today’s announcement brings the number of selected British athletes to a total of 105 across nine sports.

Penny Briscoe, ParalympicsGB Chef de Mission for Rio 2016, said: "This is a fantastic and talented group of players and I’d like to pay credit to all of the home nations for the excellent work they have undertaken to identify new talent and to bring them through to compete on the international stage.

"I’d also like to congratulate the players for all of the hard work which has led to their selection to the team.

"They have the opportunity to shine when the Games get under way in 86 days' time."

Britain were eliminated in the group stage at London 2012, where Russia topped the podium ahead of Ukraine and Iran. 

Four years earlier in Beijing they suffered the same fate as Ukraine, Russia and Iran took gold, silver and bronze respectively.