Southland has signed a second Ormond brother and a set of Auckland brothers as it starts to assemble its squad for the coming season.
Lewis Ormand will be back for Southland for a second season and he will be joined by fullback brother Jackson Ormand in the Southland jersey.
It is an exciting time for Jackson Ormond, who has delayed his arrival in Southland while he awaits the arrival of his second child.
The 27-year-old has played 56 games for Taranaki since 2011, mostly as a winger, along with appearances at centre and fullback.
Jackson has also been a member of the Hurricanes wider training squad and played three tournaments for the New Zealand sevens team. He is looking forward to heading south.
"It’s certainly taking me out of my comfort zone," he said.
"I think it will be good. It’s a fresh start and a chance to play with my brother, which is something I enjoy. Younger brother and 2016 Olympic sevens representative Lewis said he had some unfinished business after a winless season with the Stags in 2017.
"We didn’t have a good season last year and I didn’t want to leave on a bad note. I’ve come back to try and improve our status."
New Southland head coach Dave Hewett has also signed Auckland Mitre 10 Cup and sevens player Nico Costa, and the Argentinian-born halfback has brought older brothers Ignacio and Rodrigo south to play alongside him at Woodlands.
Hewett reconfirmed his commitment to having contracted players contributing to Southland rugby at club level.
"We want as many Stags players as possible to come from club rugby in Southland. That will obviously mean local boys and also people who have come down here to play club rugby.
"There will be some guys who don’t play club rugby because there will be positions that we just have to fill, but primarily we would like to get as many from clubs. We want them to bring their families, contribute to the community and make it a two-way street, rather than just coming in for the Mitre 10 Cup."