All-Australian full-back Dustin Fletcher, Grand Final hero Paul Barnard and star back pocket Mark Johnson have signed new contracts with the Essendon Football Club.

Under the new agreements Fletcher will have another three years with the club at the completion of this season while Barnard and Johnson have signed two-year agreements that will commence at the end of the 2001 season.

“We are very pleased to have secured these three players on new contracts. Dustin Fletcher has shown himself to be among the finest defenders in the competition and Essendon supporters will be ecstatic that he has signed this latest contract,” Essendon chief executive Peter Jackson said. “Paul Barnard and Mark Johnson are being justly rewarded for the excellent seasons they had last year.”

Jackson said Essendon supporters could be assured the club would continue its negotiations with the current playing list. “It is going to be difficult to keep this playing list together – that is something we have made abundantly clear to everyone since our success of last year. But this is a close-knit group who value success – we are hopeful that will count for something in the coming weeks,” he said.