Basingstoke Bison are proud to announce Ciaran Long as their latest signing ahead of their English Premier League (EPL) 2010/11 campaign.

The 19-year old forward becomes the Bison's sixth signing for the summer, but the first who will be a new face to the Herd line-up.

Bison Director of Hockey Steve Moria is delighted to be welcoming Ciaran to the Basingstoke Arena.

'He's an extremely gifted hockey player and one that I believe Basingstoke fans will really enjoy watching next season' said Steve.

'I believe that he is getting better with every season that he played and has the potential to score over 30 goals next season.'

Long, who was born in Birmingham, comes off the back of a successful season, collecting 40 points in 51 games as his side won the EPL Play-Offs in Coventry. He has also previously iced in the EPL for the Swindon Wildcats, making his debut in 2005.

On the international front, Ciaran has represented Great Britain at under 18 and under 20 and was part of the squad that won gold at the Under 20's World Junior Championship (Div2A) last season.

Bison fans have the chance to own Long's match-worn jerseys for the season as part of the Own and Loan scheme, which proved to be a great success last season.

Each player's home and away jersey will be available at £150 for the home shirt and £120 for the away.

All owners and loaners will have their name printed on the back of the player's jersey, as well as having the opportunity of getting a photograph with their respective player at the end of the season.

The jerseys are available on a first-come, first-served basis by e-mailing bison.info@planet-ice.co.uk.