BRISBANE Roar Academy general manager Warren Moon sees Northern New South Wales as an untapped region that houses young footballing talent.
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In February, Port Macquarie will become the location for one of eight talent identification hubs in an area stretching from north Queensland down to the Mid-North Coast.
It will join other locations such as the Sunshine Coast, Bundaberg, Ipswich and the Gold Coast.
But Moon insists their foray into the area shouldn't be seen as them trying to compete with the Newcastle Jets.
"It's always good to have options," he said.
"If we identify some talent and they end up somewhere else ... that's got to be the goal.
We get a good vibe from people involved in Northern NSW Football.
- Warren Moon
"Ideally we'd love them to come to us, but we're not a closed shop when it comes to players progressing to us or to another A-League club."
All hubs will have one goal in mind - to unearth the next professional football star aged between nine and 13 from their respective regions.
"We get a good vibe from people involved in Northern NSW Football," Moon said.
"Port Macquarie is somewhere we're excited about.
"I don't think it will hurt if we continue to open up the pathways for the kids in the region.
"I know they do a lot of travel, so by having a hub in Port Macquarie we can offer something that is a genuine pathway."
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