for the Japan national football team during the 2015 AFC Asian Cup. Transport For a century Cessnock was served by the South Maitland Railway network, originally constructed for the coal industry, but which, at one time, had considerable passenger services, including a direct train to Sydney known as the Cessnock Flyer. The Sydney-Newcastle Freeway's Cessnock exit at Freemans Waterhole provides one of the main road connections from Sydney to Cessnock via "The Gap", a pass through the Watagan Mountains range just north of Mount Heaton. Until the Hunter Expressway opened in 2014, linking the New England Highway at Branxton and the Sydney-Newcastle Freeway at West Wallsend, through traffic passed through Cessnock. The local airport is placed just to the north of the city, at the entrance to the Vineyard District. It has a small public passenger terminal and also serves as the base for aviation training organisations such as Avondale College's school of Aviation and Hunter Valley Aviation. The airport is not served by RPT flights. Access by air to the region is by Newcastle Airport at Williamtown, away. The local bus service is run by Rover Coaches which provide services to Maitland, Newcastle and Morisset and school bus services. Notable people Douglas N. Daft, businessman; CEO of Coca-Cola (2000–04), and Corporate Director of Wal-Mart Joel Edwards, rugby league player Andrew Johns, rugby league player Matthew Johns, rugby league player Gavin King, journalist; newspaper columnist Bruce Litchfield, architect Kenneth Neate, opera singer Jack Newton, professional golfer Bill Peden, rugby league player Frank Rickwood, President of BP Alaska, Chairman of Oil Search Don Schofield, Rugby League Player Simon Whitlock, Professional Darts Player Rod McCormack, multi times National Guitar and Banjo Champion, Australian Musician of the year, Jeff McCormack, Multi Golden Guitar winner, Australian musician of the year National Estate Greater Cessnock contains a number of buildings and sites that are on the Register of the National Estate. Court House, Branxton Police Station and Residence, Branxton Former Court House, Greta Kurri Kurri Hotel, Lang and Hampden Streets, Kurri Kurri Richmond Main Colliery, Mulbring Rd, Pelaw Main Laguna House, Laguna Post Office, Wollombi Endeavour Museum (former Court House), Wollombi Public School, Wollombi St Michael's Catholic Church, Wollombi St John the Evangelist Anglican Church, Wollombi Stanford Main No.2 Colliery Pit Head Building, Brick Cottages Aboriginal Rock Carvings Site, popularly known as Baiame Cave, Milbrodale Area Crime In 2021, Cessnock had an amphetamine use/possession rate