While they aren’t quite the calibre of the star Ovens and Murray recruits, the Cats have thought outside the square in a bid to bring excitement and, more importantly, crowds back to country football.

Meet James Woodhouse and Daniel Stafford.

The talented pair join the Cats after impressive seasons with Nightcliff in the Northern Territory Football League.

Woodhouse, who hails from the Kimberley gateway of Kununurra, kicked 35 goals in 15 games for the Tigers over the summer, with the NTFL side falling to the Tiwi Bombers by 14 points in the NT decider earlier this month.

Big man Stafford, who enjoyed a less consistent run in the seniors, earned a late recall to kick five goals in the final two games of the season, with the towering 18-year-old kicking two in the grand final loss.

Their arrival is a major boost for the club whose last major coup was the signing of St Kilda great Nicky Winmar for the 2006 season.

“Little things like this help get a bit of excitement back around the place,” Cats president Greg Lumby said this week.

“We’ve lost a few to university and things like that over the off season.

“A few others have gone to try their luck at Ovens and Murray level this year as well.

“Hopefully this generates a bit of excitement and gives us a bit of a boost.”

Stafford, a product of Amnatjere — a small community 250 kilometres north-west of Alice Springs — is a raw talent with exceptional athletic ability for his size.

The 195-centimetre tall, who is likely to rotate between the ruck and forward line for the Cats, was labelled a player to watch by AFL draft guru Kevin Sheehan at the national championships last year.

Despite the indigenous link to Winmar, it was another former player, Scott Francis, who helped attract the pair to Barkly Park.

“We were told those two boys were looking to come down so we jumped at the chance,” Lumby said.

“We’re lacking a bit in height this year and Daniel is a big boy.”

While they both were born and raised thousands of kilometres from Rutherglen, Lumby has little concern about the pair’s ability to adjust to Border life in the coming months.

“They’re both only kids and we’ve got a reasonably young list this season,” he said.

“They’ll blend in with the group really well.”

And he isn’t doubting their commitment to the club, either.

“The first thing they asked when we picked them up from the airport on Tuesday was whether we were training tonight.

“They trained beautifully.

“You wouldn’t have known they’d spent a few hours on a plane that day.”

But it’s not just football ability that the pair will bring to Barkly Park, with Woodhouse set to help the Cats’ juniors.

The 19-year-old coached Nightcliff’s second division under-14 side last season.

“That was a pretty big part in getting James down,” Lumby said.

“He wanted to help out with our junior development and he’s already jumped at the chance to help Terry Griffin with our under-14s.

“It’s the first time we’ve done something like this in my time as president and although we’ve only seen them train once, it looks like something we’ll keep doing in the future.”

Stafford and Woodhouse will play their first game for the Cats against arch rival Wahgunyah on Saturday.