THE Basingstoke Bison have have beefed up their defence with the signing of Alex Symonds.

The addition of top English Premier League defenceman Symonds will certainly add more grit to the Bison defence.

The 27-year-old is no stranger to the Herd, having played for the Bison in Doug Sheppard’s first year in charge in Basingstoke, before joining the Swindon Wildcats.

The rugged blue liner, who won a play-off crown with Sheppard at Slough, is a great addition to the Bison as they look to try and regain top spot in the EPL this weekend.

A delighted Bison head coach Doug Sheppard said: “He is a great pick-up for the team and someone who is going to fit in easily.”

Symonds will be in the line-up this weekend. The Bison host league champions Telford Tigers on Saturday at 6.30pm and then face a trip to Manchester Phoenix’s new Deeside home on Sunday at 6.30pm.

The Herd have already played both teams this season. The games only took place a fortnight ago, with a double win sending them to top spot in the league.

They will hope to complete yet another quick double over their EPL rivals, and club captain Aaron Connolly is expected to be back in the line-up after having missed the last three games due to injury.

Looking ahead to another tough double-header, Sheppard said: “We know both games are going to be tough and we have to make sure we are ready for both of them.”

The Bison will also hope they can grab a couple of wins to celebrate the news that IT security company Barracuda Networks, who are based in Stephenson Road, are becoming main sponsors of the Herd.

They will sponsor Bison TV and will also have their names put on the Bison jerseys.

Sheppard is thrilled to have them on board and said: “It is always good for the team to have sponsors from the town.

“They are keen to get involved and very excited about being a big part of the Bison. We hope it is a great relationship between us.”