Having returned from the Reds’ regional encounter in Bathurst, Coach John Kosmina has backed the concept and believes it is beneficial to the growth of the game and the Hyundai A-League.
Having returned from the Reds- regional encounter in Bathurst, Coach John Kosmina has backed the concept and believes it is beneficial to the growth of the game and the Hyundai A-League.
The Reds took on the Newcastle Jets on Wednesday night in front of an enthusiastic crowd at Bathurst-s Carrington Park, the match bringing Australia-s best football league to fans in regional areas.
As part of the experience, the Reds also attended a host of promotions and appearances in the local community to give locals a rare opportunity to rub shoulders with some of the Hyundai A-League-s biggest names.
Kosmina complimented the people of Bathurst and the town-s commitment to making the occasion such a success, and believes it is a concept that has a future in seasons to come.
“I think it-s a good idea. A lot of people have complained to me that the pictures look terrible on TV and I know TV pays a lot of money but it-s not all about TV either, it-s about taking the game to the country,” Kosmina said.
“It would have been nice if we could have gone to regional South Australia but we didn-t, so Bathurst was nice, the people were great, the hospitality was fantastic and even with a little bit of rain and drizzle as there was, they had just over 3,000 turn up.”
“I think it-s important and the rival football codes all do that kind of thing and I suppose if we-re going to compete with them, we have to compete with them head on.”
Other locations to hold a match as part of the league-s regional fixtures include Dunedin in New Zealand, Launceston, Morwell, Campbelltown and Kogarah.
