The Dogs have already signed a couple of Hampden league young guns - Andy Lowe and Cooper Graham.

Lowe played 10 senior matches for Port Fairy this season and featured in the best twice.

Graham played in South Warrnambool's under 18.5 premiership team this season.

Phillips said the pair were ideal recruits for the club "trying to build a list for years to come".

"They fit the age group we're aiming for," he said.

"All the recruits we're talking to are in that 20-23 (years) bracket."

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Phillips said he had been impressed by Lowe's pre-season thus far.

"You can tell by how he trains that he's a classy player," he said.

"He'll probably go through the midfield for us."

The Dogs coach added that Graham was a highly-rated junior who would likely go through wing and half-forward.

Dennington's recruiting spree is certainly not finished with the club talking to six ex-junior players who have been playing in the Hampden league.

Phillips said the club was targeting those players because they would be one-pointers (player points allocation) if they returned to their home club.

The second-season mentor said the club was also in discussion with a couple of ex-premiership (2015) players.

Phillips is also aiming to go round again. His past two seasons were interrupted by knee surgery and broken ribs.

One of the most pleasing things for the re-signed coach is that he has been able to retain almost all his players from the 2019 campaign.

Something that impressed him was when his players took it upon themselves to have a kick one night in September.

Twenty-two players turned up.

He said the group gelled together really well off-field this year despite the on-field hardship.

The Dogs finished last with only one win.

Jason McDonough will coach the Dogs' reserves team in 2020.

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