Around $5m is the minimum sum needed to demonstrate a serious bid and cause Football Federation Australia to sit up and take notice.

South Coast have launched their official website in the last 24 hours with a poll in place to choose a name for the team, who would play home games in Wollongong.

Bid chairman Eddy De Gabriele is delighted with the momentum being generated and is looking forward to the next stage in convincing the FFA to grant them a place in the competition.

He told au.fourfourtwo.com: “I think we’re about halfway (to the $5m start up figure) and we are very close to putting an innovative model to the FFA in the next few weeks designed to generate $2m.

“I can’t say any more at this stage but it’s a unique scheme that’s very much in line with our belief in a community engagement.

“We will put this to the FFA and hope they can see the merits.”

The bid team say getting the community on board has been as important as generating funds with a clear message that this is not a ‘Wollongong’ or ‘Illawara’ bid, it is for the South Coast area as a whole.

De Gabriele insists the bid, backed by Socceroos Scott Chipperfield and Tim Cahill, is one that tells it how it is rather than seek headlines without substance.

He said: “We are part of the community and we’re not interested in creating a smoke and mirrors situation. We are concentrating on our own efforts and we haven’t been making public comments about other bids.”

Time is running out to convince the FFA that South Coast should feature in the 2009-10 competition but De Gabriele is still not ruling it out completely.

He said: “To be honest I think our window for that is only there for another four to eight weeks though.”

As for a name for the South Coast team, the options to vote on are Diamonds, Reds, Angels, Stars or Dolphins.

A big effort is planned to woo potential investors this weekend when Wollongong plays host to Sydney FC and Wellington Phoenix in the Pre-Season Cup.

“We’re working hard on bringing both business and the public to the game,” said De Gabriele. The bid website is www.southcoastfootball.com.au.