Panthers took to social media on Tuesday, December 19, to announce the signing of South Coast junior Jimmy Grant.

Grant spent 2023 with Cairns Brothers in the Far North Queensland Rugby League, where he won a premiership, having also played for the Mareeba Gladiators in the same competition.

Having grown up in the South Coast town of Pambula, he was also a premiership winner with the Bega Roosters in Group 16.

Grant said he's looking forward to testing himself in the Peter McDonald Premiership in 2024.

"I think that's what draws me to it. I've played with some ex-NRL players and against them up in far north Queensland," he said.

"I've heard this comp is pretty tough, so I want to test myself against the best in the west.

"I travelled around a bit playing footy. I'm sorta settled down here now, so I'm looking to call the Bathurst Panthers home for a long time to come."

While he'll be playing with the Panthers in 2024, Grant actually lives in Orange and it's his work with the Cabonne Council that brought he down to the Central West.

He had heard plenty of good things about the Panthers and it's why he reached out to treasurer Danny Dwyer.

"I was moving down here from far north Queensland but I was still wanting to play footy," he said.

"I spoke to Danny and he hit the ball rolling and got everything sorted.

"It took a few months but at the end of the day, we signed."

Bathurst winters will be quite different to tropical Cairns, but Grant isn't fazed by the cold conditions.

"It's obviously a lot colder here than what I'm used to," he said.

"I've heard all about these cold Bathurst nights, so it'll be good to get amongst it and try and see how the body holds up."

Panthers will be hoping to go further in 2024, having fallen in second week of the Peter McDonald Premiership finals for consecutive seasons.