Newcastle Jets players, coaches and support staff will hit the road this month, traveling approximately 1000 kilometres over six days as the club seeks to connect with and inspire football fans from across Northern New South Wales.
JETS: TOUR is being fuelled by the Greater Building Society, and supported by Slater and Gordon Lawyers, University of New England, SportUNE and Armidale Dumaresq Council, with further local sponsors set to be announced with the full tour itinerary.
Departing Newcastle on Monday 27 July, the Jets will weave their way up the idyllic north coast on the first two days of the tour, before venturing inland to Armidale where the squad will set up-up camp at the University of New England (UNE) for three nights.
It is in Armidale that the Jets will hold an intra-club training match at UNE.
The ‘Jets A’ vs. ‘Jets B’ training match is set to kick-off at 6:00pm on Friday 31 July at SportUNE’s Consett David Fields, and in collaboration with Northern Inland Football will feature up to four of the zone’s top talents as part of the ‘B’ team.
After visiting junior football matches in Armidale and Tamworth on the morning of Saturday 1 August, the Jets will complete their route back to Hunter Stadium in the afternoon.
Newcastle Jets Chief Executive Officer, Mr Mitchell Murphy, said that the tour’s objectives are multifaceted.
“With many new players the tour is an ideal opportunity for the players to bond in the lead up to 11th Hyundai A-League season,” Murphy said. “The time is certainly right for us to take the club to towns in Northern New South Wales where we know we’ve got some highly passionate members and fans.”
“By providing football people in Taree, Port Macquarie, Coffs Harbour, Armidale and Tamworth with the opportunity to interact with our club, we have the potential to positively influence, or even start, someone’s football journey.”
Newcastle Jets Head Coach Scott Miller revealed some of the aspects he and his staff will be working on with the squad on the tour.
“Aside from technical and tactical training sessions and community visits we will be spending two of the evenings on the tour working to educate the players,” Miller said.
“One of the nights will be focused on leadership, group culture and goal-setting, while the other will revolve around our style and principles of play, specifically positional roles and responsibilities in attack, defence, and transition.”
JETS: TOUR – Fuelled by the Greater Building Society:
Monday 27 July 2015: Taree & Port Macquarie
Tuesday 28 July 2015: Coffs Harbour
Wednesday 29 July 2015: Armidale
Thursday 30 July 2015: Armidale
Friday 31 July 2015: Armidale (‘Jets A’ vs. ‘Jets B’ at UNE)
Saturday 31 July: Armidale & Tamworth
The club will publish its full JETS: TOUR itinerary, inclusive of training sessions and community activities, at www.NewcastleJets.com.au and on its social channels prior to departure.
