STOURBRIDGE boss Gary Hackett has made his first signings of the summer.

Former Halesowen Town defensive midfielder Aaron Forde has arrived at the War Memorial Ground from Rushall Olympic.

He is also joined by former Gloucester City defender Bobby Moseley. The left-sided player came though the ranks at Coventry City and Birmingham City and had spells at Stoke, Solihull Moors and Southport before linking up with Gloucester for the second half of last season.

He has also represented the Republic of Ireland at youth level, appearing in both the under-17 and under-19 UEFA European Championships.

The double deal follows the departure of key attackers Luke Benbow and Chris Lait to Solihull Moors last week. They will link up with defender Kristian Green after his move to Liam McDonald's men last term.

Hackett also admits that midfielder Tom Tonks could be the next to leave the club for Solihull after the Stour captain spoke to the National League outfit.

However, despite the departures, the boss is hopeful others will soon arrive at Amblecote as next season's squad takes shape. That will include defender Jack Duggan after the centre back agreed a one-year deal.

Hackett said: "We are speaking to a host of new players and are hopefully getting close to adding a few more to the squad. We are now talking to our targets and working to get the people we want.

"We knew a few players would leave after we didn't go up but the key is not to panic. As we have shown in the past with the likes of Karl Hawley and Paul McCone that there are some cracking players that you can sign even the week before the season starts.

"As well as bringing in Aaron Forde and Bobby Moseley I'm hopeful we can get two or three others in this week. We've also been talking to last year's players and are close to announcing those who have agreed to stay with us as well."

On the departures of Benbow and Lait, he added: "I think a lot of people questioned my logic to bring Luke back last season but I knew that if he was fit he'd score a lot of goals for us, and that proved to be the case.

"I'm delighted for him that he has the chance to move to a higher level.

"Chris Lait is an honest boy and he'll admit himself he wasn't able to have the impact he did the previous season, especially due to the injuries he picked up. But again he has been given the chance to test himself at a higher level and it's hard to compete with that. It is the nature of missing out on promotion.

"Those leaving have probably enjoyed their best moments of their career here so far and they will always be welcome if things don't work out elsewhere."