Despite losing last season’s grand final man of the match and Roy Stewart rookie of the year Ryan James to the under 20 St George-Illawarra Dragons team, Jets coach Ben Wellington is confident his team has the depth to build on last seasons success.

“Obviously losing Ryan James to the Dragons is going to be a big loss, but on the same token, we are happy that he is playing some good footy for them,” Wellington said.

“He started last week against the Knights in the back row and we are all hoping he sticks it out and continues to improve.

“We welcome back the Brandon brothers, who were poised to play for Corrimal but have moved back to the area due to some personal issues.

“Their experience, along with the skillful play of halfback Geoff Johnson should hold us in good stead this season.

“We have also welcomed John Carey, Glenn McCallum, Buddy Braddick, Sean Lynch and Joel Deaves back into the squad, highlighting the depth of our team.”

The squad has been training together since late December, which has enabled coach Wellington is integrate some new structures for the team.

“We have had a very productive pre-season together, with all the boys putting in the hard work,” he said.

“The goal is to obviously build on last season and we intend on doing that by starting the season strongly and maintaining that throughout the season.

“It’s up to us as a team to continue to raise the bar each week.

“The competition looks like it is going to be as tough as ever and will come down to which team is the most disciplined and minimizes their errors.”

The Jets will open their 2015 campaign on Sunday against Milton-Ulladulla Bulldogs at Bomaderry Sporting Complex.