'Camp Rabbitoh' Established in Coffs Harbour

6th March 2008

The South Sydney Rabbitohs are to make the top-class sporting facilities at Novotel Pacific Bay Resort in Coffs Harbour their training camp for the next three years, after a partnership was announced at 'Camp Rabbitoh' today. The Rabbitohs will take over the tenancy at the Novotel Pacific Bay Resort in a deal which includes the team playing a pre-season match in Coffs Harbour each year against another NRL side, two training camps per year, plus Souths Cares programs and activities to benefit the local community and Rugby League in the region. The partnership includes:

  • Novotel Pacific Bay Resort to be known as 'Camp Rabbitoh'
  • The opportunity to develop a promotional campaign to promote Coffs Harbour to Australia using Rabbitohs players and coaching staff
  • Match Day Signage to promote Coffs Harbour events
  • Pre-season Match - One trial match per year in Coffs Harbour against a fellow NRL team
  • Business Seminar delivered by SSFC personnel during each stay at Camp Rabbitoh
  • Primary School training and education program for schools in Coffs Harbour Local Government Area
  • The possibility of an annual scholarship program rewarding outstanding Rugby League talent in Coffs Harbour to be developed in partnership with Coffs Harbour City Council and others
  • Opportunity to support the Souths Cares program that provides unemployed Indigenous Australians with the best possible opportunities to enter the workforce
  • A Sportsman's Dinner where Rabbitohs squad and coaching staff attend dinner, provide speeches and interviews and SSFC assistance with prizes
  • A Golf Day at Bonville International Golf Resort where players and coaching staff will participate and can be used for speeches, interviews and SSFC assistance with prizes.

    South Sydney Football Club Executive Chairman Peter Holmes à Court said: "This partnership will not only allow us to train at one of the elite training camps in the country, it will also enable us to connect with the community and work with the people on the Coffs Coast. We've made ANZ Stadium our home for games for the next ten years, we're returning to Redfern as our main training base, we're looking at options to broaden the Club's appeal to the west coast, and now we can add 'Camp Rabbitoh' in Coffs Harbour as a another piece of the puzzle that is going to make this Club successful again. We're pleased that we can work with the community members of Coffs Harbour and the surrounding areas to help promote Rugby League and help disadvantaged people of the area through our Souths Cares programs."

    Coffs Harbour Mayor, Councillor Keith Rhoades said: "We're very proud that the Rabbitohs have chosen Coffs Harbour as their future base for training camps. Having close links with an elite team of the calibre and reputation of the Rabbitohs reinforces the city?s position as the first-choice regional sporting venue in NSW. Not only will our relationship with the Rabbitohs give us enormous regional, national and international coverage, but it has the potential to boost local jobs, through the increased use of existing sports facilities as well as indirectly via a growth in visitors to the area. I hope the team will also provide an inspiration for young, local sporting talent to aim for the top," he said.

    Stephen Sawtell, Council's General Manager, said one of the main attractions of the South Sydney Rabbitohs Football Club was their pro-active involvement in community programs that promote sport and help disadvantaged youngsters and their families. "The Rabbitohs team, players and management, have shown themselves committed to working very closely with the communities with which they are involved," said Mr Sawtell. "There are huge potential benefits for our local community through our association with the club. The 'Souths Cares' program, for example, focuses on Indigenous communities, promoting the benefits of education and healthy lifestyles and supporting pre-employment courses, mentoring and workplace opportunities. In addition, we will be working with Souths on extending their scholarship program - to help disadvantaged youth achieve their goals on the sporting field and academically, into the local Coffs Harbour area."

    Rabbitohs Announce 2009 Camp Rabbitohs Trial against Panthers

    20th August 2008

    The South Sydney Rabbitohs have announced that they will be playing a trial match against the Penrith Panthers at Coffs Harbour's BCU International Stadium on Saturday 14 February, 2009. The trial match will be a culmination of a week-long training camp held at Camp Rabbitoh at the Novotel Pacific Bay Resort in Coffs Harbour. Rabbitohs CEO Shane Richardson said that the Rabbitohs are receiving great support from the people of Coffs Harbour.

    "We have had some wonderful discussions with Coffs Harbour City Council, Group 2 Rugby League and the local community up here and there is strong support for the Rabbitohs in Coffs Harbour," Mr Richardson said at Camp Rabbitoh yesterday. "We're looking forward to implementing some of Souths Cares' community programmes into the local community up here, training here and playing against the Panthers in our first NRL trial of the new year. "We're working with Group 2 to help strengthen the game up as well, so we will have strong ties to the community and surrounding areas of Coffs Harbour." Coffs Harbour Mayor, Councillor Keith Rhoades, said: "One of the key drivers behind our partnership with the South Sydney Rabbitohs was the opportunity to bring sport at this level to local fans - particularly kids. "Being able to see their heroes play and train in their own city will be an inspiration for local supporters and talented young players."

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