Only 24 hours after landing in his new hometown, new Central Coast signing Chris Doig has taken part in his first training session with his new club, joining Mariner team-mates in a gruelling two-hour fitness testing session on Monday afternoon.
Twenty-eight-year-old Doig, who played 232 games of English football, including 93 matches for former English Premier League side Nottingham Forrest, conceded it was a tough session so soon after a 30-hour plane journey.
“My legs are a bit like jelly, I think they are still in Dubai, but no, it was good to get out there and get the first session out of the way,” Doig said.
“They are a great group of lads, but it’s just getting the legs going again. This is the longest break I’ve had after a season so that, coupled with the journey means it will take me a few days to get going, but it was a good session.”
The session, the first in a five-week pre-season campaign, was held in temperatures well into the 20’s, conditions Doig, who hails from Scotland, will have to acclimatise to ahead of the hot Australian summer.
“That will be interesting, but hopefully by then I will have acclimatised, so we’ll see,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Mariners also announced that an application with the Wyong Shire Council to begin plans on the Mariners Centre of Excellence at Tuggerah has been lodged.
Should the application be approved, the new sporting facility will feature six full sized playing fields, a boutique arena, 10 small sided, multi sport fields, a six-storey administration building, a sports science building, a 120-room accommodation block, an indoor aquatic centre, gymnasium, refurbished and extended licensed club.
Mariners deputy chairman Peter Turnbull said he was excited by the proposal.
“This is a landmark milestone on our quest to make the Central Coast the hub of football excellence in this country. Not only will Mariners at Tuggerah offer our club a world-class football and administration facility, but it will also prove to be a tremendous asset for the wider community.” Turnbull said.
The Mariners hope to have approval for development by late-December.
