BATHURST Panthers have bolstered their forward stocks with the signing of prop Greg Behan for the 2015 Group 10 premier league season.

The former Group 10 representative player left the Bathurst club at the end of 2011 to join the Oberon Tigers, but after three seasons he has decided to return to Panthers.

Behan initially left his junior club to help establish the Tigers in their return to premier league.

That he did as they featured in two  Group 10 finals campaigns.

But next year he will be alongside one of 2014’s best forwards in Brent Seager, creating a dangerous Panthers front row pairing.

Panthers president Dennis Comerford is happy to see him back after Behan fulfilled his obligation to the Tigers.

“Greg’s one of our juniors, so it’s great to have him back in the club. He wanted to come back to the club for a change. He went there [Oberon] originally to help out with the club when they came back to the top,” he said.

“He’ll supplement Brent Seager in the front row and help take some of the work load there.

“Being alongside Carpo [hooker Luke Carpenter] in that front row, you could say that we’ve got ourselves one of the most experienced forward packs in the competition.”

The signing of Behan is tempered by the unfortunate situation which has led to prop Osea Sedrau leaving the club.

The former Fijian international proved a valuable addition for the Panthers in their revival through the second half of this year’s season.

It took them from extreme outsiders to the first week of the finals where their run was eventually ended by Orange Hawks.

Logistical issues plagued the attempts of the Panthers to retain Sedrau’s services and Comerford was disappointed to see him go.

“He was brought in to help and was a big asset for the team. With him being a Fijian international though we ran into some problems with passports, visas and insurance,” he said.

“He had a lot of quality about him. It’s just that all these other little things made it difficult.”

The 2015 premier league line up is now just about set for the Bathurst club according to Comerford.

It is hoped the signing of Behan is the latest piece of the puzzle for Panthers in their premiership plan that has been in development for several years.

“I’d say we’re pretty right across the board, with just about all our positions covered. With Todd Barrow in as captain-coach, he fills two roles as well,” he said.

“The first half of this season was difficult for us because there were games there where we could have got across the line and that came back to bite us later in the season. We were lucky to get to the finals.

“This year we hoped to make finals and we did that. Next year we plan to be very competitive and aim to be up there in the top three.”