EDUCATION Secretary Michael Gove last night won a grudging welcome to his partial U-turn over school sports funding.

He promised to salvage £47m from the £162m partnership aimed at increasing competitive sport, which he previously axed.

He also pledged that £65m will be released in the two academic years straddling the 2012 Olympics, to ensure one dedicated PE teacher per school.

The move was an embarrassing climbdown for him and followed an intervention by David Cameron, who demanded a rethink after the coalition Government was hit by a public backlash.

Earlier this month, Merseyside pupils delivered an 18,000-strong petition to Downing Street, protesting that 170,000 students would be hit by the axing of £4m annual sports funding for the region’s schools.

Mr Gove, who previously described the Schools Sports Partnership set up by Labour as a “complete failure”, was forced to back down.

He said: “I want competitive sport to be at the centre of a truly rounded education that all schools offer.

“But this must be led by schools and parents, not by top-down policies from London.”

But the Opposition pointed out his revamp made no promises after 2013, and risked squandering any impetus created by the 2012 London Olympics and Paralympics.

Liverpool-born Shadow Education Secretary Andy Burnham said: “This is an embarrassing climbdown, but I will not give it an unqualified welcome.

“The coalition tried to disguise a bad decision with dodgy statistics.

“They still risk wasting the excitement and enthusiasm of a new generation following 2012.”