THE Southern Mallee Giants have added three new signings to their list as they look to win their third-straight Horsham district league premiership in 2018.
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Former Greater Western Victoria Rebels captain and best and fairest winner Josh Webster joins his brother Ben at the Giants for next season.
Webster has most recently played with the North Ballarat Roosters in the Victorian Football League and will be a handy recruit for the Giants after playing at a high level.
Reece McNally has also signed on with the Giants for their premiership defence.
McNally comes from the Imperials in the Sunraysia Football and Netball League, where he previously captained the club.
Nick O’Farrell will also join the reigning premier and will add some goal-kicking power to the list.
O’Farrell was the leading goal kicker for the Ballarat Swans in the Ballarat Football League last season.
Southern Mallee Giants president Brad Moore said all three players would provide a valuable boost to the club.
“They’re very good footballers and all played a pretty good standard of football,” Moore said. “We are pretty happy and excited about them. They will fit in well.”
Moore said the Giants were lucky to have secured the services of Webster.
“Everyone I’ve spoken to said Josh is a very, very good footballer,” he said.
“There were a few clubs chasing him and we are lucky enough to have his brother play for us, so he wanted to play with him too.”
Moore said the signings would help replace some of the players who had left the club during the off-season.
Last year’s coach Shaun Monohan and Luke Mahony have both left the club, while the Giants will also be without Kain Robins in 2018.
Robins kicked 117 goals last season and was instrumental in the side’s second-straight premiership.
Moore said O’Farrell would help fill the void left by Robins, who will coach Charlton next season in the North Central Football League.
“Nick O’Farell sounds like a good little goal sneak,” Moore said.
“He has kicked plenty of goals in the Ballarat Football League. We will have to find a few goals with the new recruits and some of the others stepping up with Kain leaving.”
Moore said the Giants’ list was in a healthy position as they looked to mount another premiership challenge.
“At the moment we are pretty happy with the list,” he said.
“We definitely won’t be any worse next year with the list we have now.
“We will hopefully get Lou White back. He didn’t play in last year’s grand final and missed a fair bit of last year with injury.
“We are confident and are aiming to finish top two.”