Dylan Caton re-signs with Illawarra Premier League club Helensburgh Thistle

The Thistle announced on Monday that the former Sydney FC talent would remain at the club for their next Illawarra Premier League campaign. It is the first official player announcement made by Burgh since they revealed in September that Michlmayr would take the reins from outgoing mentor Andy Paine.

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Caton arrived in Helensburgh ahead of the 2023 season and was driving force in the side finishing mid-table in their inaugural campaign back in the IPL.

Michlmayr said the 28-year-old midfielder was also a huge part of his plans for the 2024 season.

"Dylan was a key priority to get locked in when I took over the role. He's obviously a very important player for the squad, but he's also a leader, with the way other guys look up to him," Michlmayr told the Mercury.

"So it was important to get that one sorted quickly. He's a quality player and a quality person so he's going to be a big asset for us next year."

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Caton was the first in a host of re-signings that the Thistle plan to reveal in the coming days and weeks.

"We've retained about 90 per cent of this year's squad, and we've added one (recruit) at this stage, and we're looking to add a couple more in the coming weeks. So we're pretty confident with our retention so far," Michlmayr said.

"We don't need to reinvent the wheel too much, they (Helensburgh) had a lot of draws, and if you could turn them into wins, they would have played semi-final football this year. So we're happy with the current squad and we're just adding a couple of key players in a few important areas on the field."

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