COOLANGATTA have pulled off a stunning promotional coup by signing colourful former AFL star Jason Akermanis to a one-off match appearance in May. Akermanis, the 300-game former Brisbane and Western Bulldogs star, will feature in a sports dinner at Peak Oval on Friday night, May 20, then turn out for the Blues in a southern Gold Coast derby against Palm Beach-Currumbin on the next afternoon.
(by Terry Wilson)
Behind the scenes, Palm Beach officials have been sounded about the possibility of them bringing ex-North Melbourne superstar Wayne Carey back for a one-off appearance in the same match.The Coolangatta-PBC derby was originally scheduled for next Thursday night, but was switched back to its round-six slot because of concerns over the Peak Oval lights.An appearance by Akermanis against the Lions, albeit this version Palm Beach-Currumbin rather than Brisbane, is sure to attract a big crowd given his outspoken and colourful career both on the football field and in the media.“He’ll be doing the sports night with another Brownlow Medallist, Barry Round, then play for us on the Saturday,” said new Coolangatta coach Neil McKay.“I think this is great because it’ll give the young blokes at the club a chance to feed off him, to see how he prepares for a match and how he goes about things on the field.”
