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GISBORNE continues to lure star one-point players back to the club, with defender Tim Walsh the latest to confirm his return to Gardiner Reserve.
The signing of Walsh comes hot on the heels of the Bulldogs having also announced the returns of former captain Casey Summerfield and 2012 Michelsen Medal winner Scott Walsh for the 2019 BFNL season.
Brothers Tim and Scott Walsh and Summerfield are all best and fairest winners at Gisborne, which also has another of its past players – classy forward Pat McKenna – returning after four years in the AFL system with the GWS Giants and Melbourne.
Tim Walsh has spent the past three seasons away from Gisborne at Riddell, which included being named at full-back in the Riddell District league’s Team of the Year in 2017.
“I’ve watched a few of the games Tim has played at Riddell over the past couple of years and he’s a dominant backman,” Gisborne coach Clinton Young said on Friday.
“It’s exciting to get him back to the club and add to our defensive group, which I thought had a really good year.”
The Bulldogs have now bolstered each area of the ground with returning players – Tim Walsh in defence, Summerfield and Scott Walsh in the midfield and McKenna in the forward line.
“The most exciting part of our recruiting is they are players who are coming back to the club,” Young said.
“It’s great they all want to be a part of where we’re heading and that’s fantastic for the club.
“We’ll be starting training soon and the whole group is really excited to get stuck back into it and keep building on what we did this year.”
The Walsh brothers and Summerfield were among an exodus of players who left Gisborne at the end of the 2015 season.
The club has since spent the past three years rebuilding through an investment in youth. Their latest additions now have the Bulldogs shaping as one of the big movers in 2019.
The Bulldogs – whose senior best and fairest was won by young centre half-back Jack Reaper – this year returned to the finals for the first time since 2014, but bowed out in the first week when beaten by Sandhurst in the elimination final by 23 points.
As well as attracting experienced players back to the club, the Bulldogs also have an exciting group of youngsters coming through the ranks after their under-18s won this year’s premiership.
The Bulldogs have two confirmed departures from this year’s senior team, with Riley Paterson signing with Riddell, while Ross Celano is moving on.
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