BANYULE has signed former AFL star Chris Tarrant as it eyes a finals berth in its second season in the Northern Football League.
Tarrant, who kicked 367 goals in 268 matches for Collingwood and Fremantle, officially signed with the Bears last week.
The 35-year-old forward-turned-defender was a fan favourite at AFL level, where he was lauded for his spectacular high marking.
Banyule coach Jason Plant said Tarrant was a welcome addition on the eve of the 2016 season, helping to fill the void left by suspended tall Scott Gumbleton, who kicked 26 goals in 9 appearances last year.
“Taz coming on board is really exciting for the footy club,” Plant told NFL.org.au.
“He’s a great fella too and is a really good fit for our football club.”
Tarrant will likely miss this week’s season opener against Heidelberg West, with his first game for Banyule pencilled in for Round 2 when it hosts Watsonia.
Banyule has enjoyed a fruitful recruiting drive during the off-season, also signing former Bundoora premiership midfielder Chris Varsamakis from Lancaster, along with quartet Chris Taylor, Daniel Kayrooz, David Rigney and Russell Lee.
Taylor is a former best and fairest winner at senior level for the Bears, while Kayrooz won an under-19s best and fairest in his previous stint with the club.
“Chris Taylor has been fantastic down back, in terms of leadership,” Plant said.
“Great voice, great leadership and really helps us out with our structures and gives us a bit of run and carry from the back too.
“(Varsamakis) is really clean by hand and by footy. He’s a strong, nuggetty midfielder and he’ll be handy for us.
“In our midfield we thought we were a bit behind the eight-ball (last year) compared to the other clubs, especially the clubs who made finals.
“We were definitely looking at that over the pre-season and trying to fill those gaps. The guys we got in the second half of last year like Dave Stewart and Will Drapac have had a full pre-season and we think they’ll be better this year than they were last year.”
While the loss of Gumbleton for the 2016 season has been well documented, Banyule will also be without 2015 best and fairest winner Ash Brown and young gun Brayden Sier, who was drafted by Collingwood.
But despite the key departures, Plant said his club would be disappointed with anything less than a top four finish after missing the finals in its inaugural season in the NFL.
“We’d be disappointed if we didn’t make finals, that’s definitely the goal,” he said.
“We feel like we’re better than last year, but everyone else gets better. It’s pretty even.
“You need to qualify by winning enough games in the home and away season, but that would definitely be our goal.
“If we didn’t make it we’d be pretty disappointed with the work that we’ve put in.”
Banyule has played practice matches against Panton Hill, Old Ivanhoe and Heathcote, and also endured a gruelling weekend training camp in Torquay.
Plant said Adam Barclay and Luke Giles had been standouts during pre-season, along with new co-captains Luke French and Will Drapac.
