MARK Rooke can remember the days when Bathurst '75 was a State League team to fear and respect, but now he wants Western NSW FC to have a similar reputation.
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Next season will be Rooke's second as first grade coach of the Western side.
They will compete in the National Premier Leagues 4 competition - formerly known as State League - following a tough 2019 which saw them win just three games at NPL3 level.
Rooke knows the competition Western will face in NPL4 will be stiff, but he is still aiming to guide his men into the finals.
"Certainly the goal will be to play semi-finals, the guys were certainly disappointed with the season just past and really want to do better," he said.
"There are still a few guys there from the '75 era when we just missed out on the semis and they still talk about that, a few of them still feel that's a goal they want to achieve before they move on.
"There is still a few years for them to do that, but hopefully it happens next year."
As of yet Rooke is not sure what his playing roster will look like for 2020.
However, he is hoping to add an important to the returning talents and promoted juniors.
"I think we'll lose a couple of guys at this point in time, but we are looking to replace them with others. There are no firm people as of yet, but there are few 50-50s," he said.
"I know we didn't last season, we tried to and didn't, but hopefully we get an import this season which will help us out in area we made need. So hopefully moving forward things are looking good."
