Geelong, Australia heavyweights have declared that it is "time to throw the A-League expansion strategy out the window and consider the regional behemoth" as a permanent football home, according to David Davutovic of the HERALD SUN. Football Federation Australia CEO David Gallop has said that "big cities with populations in the millions not just hundreds of thousands" are preferred. Simonds Stadium "looks set to break the 20,000-crowd barrier for a second straight year on Friday night when Melbourne Victory hosts Central Coast Mariners." Local former footballers Josip Skoko, Steve Horvat and Adrian Leijer have joined Geelong Mayor Darren Lyons "in declaring that the region ticked most boxes with regards to housing a club." Lyons said, “It’s the biggest growing sport in the country and we’ve got a part to play, we should have our own A-League team." Former Socceroo Skoko said that "all that was needed was an individual or group of visionaries to make it happen." Skoko: "The infrastructure's not the issue, it's about getting the right persons to run it, that's the missing ingredient. It needs a consortium or someone driving it prepared to inject funds but it wouldn't be hard to attract top players, players would love the lifestyle" (HERALD SUN, 1/5).
