Ovens and Murray league clubs get busy in the recruiting market
Recruiting is in full swing in the Ovens and Murray Football League. Here are the latest moves from across the competition.
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Ovens and Murray clubs have been busy in the off-season, making moves to move them up the ladder.
From current VFL players to former AFL players there has been a swagger of recruits across northeast Victoria.
Here is the latest from each club and to read the recruits from earlier this off-season, head here.
Albury Tigers
The biggest recruit for the Tigers this off-season has been former Geelong and Gold Coast Suns player George Horlin-Smith. Horlin-Smith will reunite with good mate and former teammate Anthony Miles, who is the coach of the team. Albury has also added Hamish Gilmore who played for Lavington last season after previously playing in Wagga. The two new signings add to five others who signed last year including Isaac Muller from Wodonga Raiders.
Corowa-Rutherglen
Club is likely to be in recess this season, so no signings have been announced or updated.
Lavington
The Panthers have made half a dozen signings, headlined by Liam Ross who returns to the club after playing for the GWS Giants in the VFL. Macca Hollows and Kai Davies, after signing for VFL club Essendon last year, also return in some capacity. Finally, the club has added Tyson Neander, Caleb Clemson and Aidan Johnson. Neander comes from the Hume League after playing for Brock/Burrum with Clemson coming from Albury. Johnson, who played in the 2019 premiership win, comes back after playing for Werribee in the VFL.
Myrtleford
The Saints have added two signings to their team with Tom Wilson and Kyle Winter-Irving joining. Wilson will play for the club when he isn’t playing for VFL side Collingwood. Winter-Irving is at the Saints after playing for Seymour in the Goulburn Valley League and captaining the club at one stage.
North Albury
The Hoppers have added some handy players including Josh Minogue who returns home after playing for Heidelberg and winning a premiership in the Northern Football League. He kicked 54 goals during the season and finished third in the league medal. Joining Minogue at the club is Tom Anderson, Jamo Bouffler and Nick Lockhart. Anderson comes to the club from Ganmain-Grong Grong-Matong in the Riverina Football League with Bouffler coming from the Uni Blues in the VAFA. Lockhart, signed late last year, comes from the Murray Magpies in the Hume League.
Wangaratta Magpies
Last year’s premiers have added two signings to the club in recent months. The big signing is former Richmond and West Coast player Pat Naish who will play for the club when he isn’t playing for Box Hill. How many games he plays, remains to be seen. The club has also added Dan Witham, Murray Waite and Cam Barrett. Witham and Waite return after playing for Tarrawingee in the Ovens and King Football League and West Adelaide in the SANFL respectively. Barrett is at the club after playing for Corowa-Rutherglen last season.
Wangaratta Rovers
The Rovers have added five players to the list, highlighted by the return of Will Christie. Christie has played for Geelong in the VFL and also for Bell Park in the Geelong Football League. The team has also added Louis Phillips, Daniel Hughes, Connor Shanley and Lockey McCartney. Phillips comes from Kyneton in the Bendigo league while Hughes has been added from Sorrento in the Mornington Peninsula Nepean. Shanley returns to the club after playing for them in 2019 with McCartney coming after playing for Geelong in the VFL and in under-18 as part of the Falcons. He is the son of former Western Bulldogs coach Brendan McCartney.
Wodonga Bulldogs
The Bulldogs have been the busiest in the off-season, adding nine signings to the club so far. This includes Matt Soroczynski who comes from Narre Warren in the Outer East competition who also played for Frankston in the VFL. The club has also added Nick Beattie, Bob Russell, Nick Hynes, Jack Yelland, Mitch Dinneen, Joel Heiner, Jack Chesser and Bailey Griffiths. Both Yelland and Dinneen come from playing in Queensland with Chesser returning to the club after playing for Culcairn in the Hume league.
Wodonga Raiders
The Raiders have continued with the signings even after adding former Adelaide and Brisbane Lions midfielder Cam Ellis-Yolmen. The team has added four more to those who already joined the club last year. This includes Ned Conway who will play for the club when he isn’t playing for North Melbourne in the VFL. He joins after playing in the Coates Talent League (NAB League) for the Western Jets last season. Joining him at the club will be Will Donaghey, Bailey Phillips and Lewis Waters. Donaghey returns to the club after playing for the Raiders in 2019 with Phillips at the club after playing for Lavington last season. Waters comes to the club after playing for Wagga Tigers.
Yarrawonga
Last year’s grand finalists have made five signings with Jake Maconachie, Dillon Walsh-Hall, Will Robinson, Matt Casey and Tom McKimmie joining the Pigeons. Maconachie, Casey and Robinson rejoins the club after playing for the Pigeons a few years ago with Walsh-Hall a former Sydney Swans Academy player.
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