GROVEDALE coach Daniel Fraser’s plan to beef up the club’s forward line has started on the right path following the signing of Geelong West GDFL star Brayden Mitchell.
Mitchell kicked 140 goals in 61 matches for the Giants after joining the club from Bairnsdale ahead of the 2016 season.
A member of the 2018 GDFL Team of the Year, Mitchell played his four years at West under Andrew Clark, who has returned to Burdoo Reserve as senior assistant coach to Fraser.
“We averaged less than 80 points a game last year, so we were on the lookout for more firepower, and Brayden came across our desk,” Fraser said.
“People probably forget this, when Brayden first moved to the area, he trained with Grovedale then.
“So there is a little bit of a link we had created from before he went to West.
“He knew about us, and he had a bit of a desire to come and prove himself, and we are looking for people to help us kick some 100-plus scores to make us a bit more competitive.
“It ticked all the boxes for us.”
With Mitchell locked away as a mid-sized forward, Fraser is continuing the hunt for a key forward to partner Cam Delaney.
“We’re on the prowl there at the moment,” he said. “We’re hoping Brayden will play as a third forward for us, with a little bit of time in the midfield.
“He’s got a bit of work to do with his fitness, and he’s already started on that.
“He’s got a really good footy brain, and I like his skill level. I watched a few videos of him from his GDFL games, and I thought he defended really well, which impressed me.”
Fraser said 90 per cent of the list Grovedale would have taken into 2020 had been signed.
“We’re just waiting for a couple of guys with work and uni to see how that all plans out with the coronavirus.
“We’re talking to a few others, but nothing’s signed at the current time.”
Fraser has set a tentative date of November 9 for a start to pre-season training, dependent on what restrictions are in place around training.
Twitter: @tom_king79
