An enthusiastic crowd has gathered at MacKay Park in Batemans Bay to watch the Canberra Raiders go through their paces.
While almost all were locals…one boy travelled to the town from Newcastle for a chance to meet his favourite player Kaeo Weekes.
Most players were left without shirts and shorts, and in some cases boot after handing them over to supporters at the end of the open training session.
Raiders forward Noah Martin, who played in juniors at Eden and Narooma, said he’s glad to be able to come back home to the Far South Coast as part of the club’s pre-season training camp.
The Green Machine are spending three days in Batemans Bay ahead of their Round One NRL clash against Manly next weekend.
“It’s always good to get back home to obviously where I played my grassroots footy,” Noah said.
“During my junior footy at Narooma I played on Batemans Bay a few times. It’s always good to get down here to see the fans,” he said.
“It’s good that the pathways are growing here.
“I remember when was in it it wasn’t real big but there’s a lot more South Coast and Far South Coast kids coming through the ranks now because they’ve got those pathways now. Raiders are good with it.”
