Woodend-Hesket’s focus on bringing local talent back into the fold has paid dividends with the club announcing its first big signing in the Riddell District Football League off season.
Former junior Daniel Toman is due to return to the club full-time next season in a move that has excited both the club and its supporters.
Toman has been playing VFL with Port Melbourne, while his local listed club has been Sunbury Lions.
Toman was named in the 2013 VFL team of the year 2013 while playing for Bendigo Gold.
Hawks’ coach Ross Sleight said Toman wanted to get back to playing football alongside his mates.
Among those he’ll be rejoining is brother Ben, who also played for the VFL and returned to the Hawks this year. Ben was the runaway winner in the club’s best and fairest award.
“When [Daniel] wasn’t playing football, he would come down to the club and we’d have a chat,” Sleight said. “I kept saying I’ll certainly give you a buzz at the end of the season.
“He could have gone to clubs left, right or centre, but he wanted to come home.
“He’ll be a big help to me and assistant coach Paul Podbury with structures and game plans.”
Sleight said he was looking forward to seeing the brothers play in the middle of the ground.
“Landing Daniel has attracted attention,” he said.“Both are ripping blokes and respected, both boys want to have success at their home club. It sets a good tone, and we want to be more competitive next year.”
Sleight said he hoped the signing of Toman would lead to other former Hawks returning to the nest. Getting players back to the club has been a big focus of the past two years.
“You’ve got to go out and bring in high quality players,” Sleight said.
“We want success … not going out to get players from everywhere. We needed a turning point to say we’re ready to chase success and we think that this is it.”
Sleight, who will coach the club for a third season, said players are keen to progress further.
The Hawks finished 10th with three wins this year. Their under-18.5s played in a second straight grand final.
“The first year was about getting players back to the club. This year ended up being a waste of year due to injuries.
“[But] It gave young kids the chance to get a run they normally wouldn’t have.”
