The classy forward/midfielder informed Horbury of his decision last week to follow in the footsteps of some other high-profile players in recent years that have left major league football in Bendigo to play at a lower level in the HDFNL.

"It's disappointing, but there's nothing we can do about it... we have to move on,'' Horbury said.

"As a coach I was gutted and really flat, but when you take that aside, as a friend I wish him all the best and hope that he wins a flag. It's a hard one to describe.

"As a club we're shattered because we're losing such a great person and player."

Horbury said he was confident Antonowicz's decision wasn't financially motivated.

"I don't know why he's going, to be honest, I don't think it's for money,'' Horbury said.

"He's one of my best mates and that's not the type of person Kaiden is."

After joining the Bloods in 2017 from the Goulburn Valley Football League, Antonowicz kicked 76 goals for the season in 2018 and won the Ron Best Medal.

A dynamic forward for most of his career with the Bloods, Antonowicz also made a big impact as a midfielder, particularly in 2022.

Antonowicz's departure comes on the back of the news that Michael Herlihy and Liam Byrne are also leaving the club.

Herlihy, who was runner-up to Horbury in the Bloods' best and fairest, is heading overseas, while Byrne has graduated as a doctor and will take up a job in Alice Springs.

"You never like losing good people and good players,'' Horbury said.

"It's a challenge for us, but we're heading in the right direction, we won a final this year and we're on the way up.

"We have a lot of faith in the players that have come through (the ranks here) and we're confident we can recruit some players to fill a couple of positions that we need.

"We're certainly not going to go out there and recruit 10 players. We want to keep spots for the players that have developed their game here."

South Bendigo's pain is White Hills' gain.

Jack Fallon, who will co-coach the Demons in 2023 with former Sandhurst defender Jake Pallpratt, was thrilled to get Antonowicz's signature.

After years of mediocrity, Antonowicz is seen as the class player that can help lift the Demons from making up the numbers in the finals to a genuine flag contender.

"After playing against Kaiden for a few years, I know exactly how good he is,'' Fallon said.

"Kaiden is a great in for the side. He's very crafty and you don't kick 70 or 80 goals in a season in Bendigo footy if you're not a quality player.

"He's a tough match-up forward, but we know he can play in the midfield as well and he'll play a bit of both for us.

"I'm really looking forward to his leadership. He's played a lot of major league footy in the GV and Bendigo and played inter-league footy, so the knowledge he can bring to the club is exactly what I'm after."

With Antonowicz and Pallpratt already on board for 2023, Fallon said the club had made a good start to the "five or six" A-graders the Demons needed to push for a flag.

Next step for the Demons is finding an A-grade ruckman or key position player.

Club greats Gavin Bowles and Matt Sawyer have announced their retirements.

"The 22 that played in the finals have re-signed for next year,'' Fallon said.

"We think we're on the right track."

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can access our trusted content: