Deloraine's highest-profile off-season recruit says the club can return to finals in 2020.
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Recording four consecutive bottom-two finishes after a top-two finish and straight-sets finals exit in 2015, the Kangaroos appear well-placed to return to September after a competitive, four-win season this year.
Former Devonport and Latrobe midfielder Brayden Butler leads an impressive list of additions to the club for the 2020 season and believes Kangaroos success is just around the corner.
"They only won four games last year but there's a lot of recruits and the younger guys coming through, they've got a good young core group," the 23-year-old said.
"Especially young ruckman Jarrod Scott - he's only a young guy and he made team of the year, so they're only going to improve and I think the players that we've brought in, we'll tear teams apart.
"I'm really looking forward to it, I think there's big things coming at this footy club and I think we can go deep in finals [next] year."
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A club best and fairest at TSL level in 2016 and a runaway winner in Latrobe's NWFL equivalent this season, Butler will be joined at the Roos in 2019 by fellow ex-Demon Dalton Murfett and Wesley Vale's Jake Freshney.
Former NTFA under-18 captain Tait Highet and St Pats reserves premiership player Addy Cosslett have also returned to the club.
Butler's inclusion will add an extra dimension to a Deloraine midfield which already boasts the reigning Hec Smith Medallist and will likely cause match-up headaches for other clubs.
"I played TSL for four years so I can bring a lot of leadership and just that experience of a higher level," the Fairbrother joiner said.
"Being a tall midfielder in this competition ... probably what this competition lacks is a bit of height so I think I'll be a hard match-up, especially with Lochy [Dornauf] in there and a couple of the other boys.
"There's three or four of us that could probably go through the midfield and forward line so I could see a lot of us spending time in the midfield together and up forward."
ELSEWHERE IN SPORT
A former Latrobe primary and high school student, Butler arrived at the Kangaroos through his partner, who lives in Deloraine.
After a 2018 season ravaged by injury and a 2019 where the Demons managed just one win, the former Tassie Mariner was excited by the offer to join the Roos.
"[Latrobe's] always been my home club but I wanted something different.
"Having Lochy as the coach and his form last year and a couple of players I know that already play for them, this was very enticing to come to."
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