The re-appointment was announced last week, with the current executive locking in the coach early.
Arthur retains the role after leading the Rhinos to the club’s inaugural MVCA Simpson Shield win in March.
The premiership win was Deni’s third attempt at glory in a row, having made grand finals the previous two seasons only to miss out.
Third time was the charm for Arthur, as the Rhinos recorded a thrilling three wicket win against Barooga in the decider.
‘‘I’m keen to go around again. I love coaching this side,’’ he said.
‘‘They’re a great bunch of blokes and we got to share a moment that was just so memorable last season.
‘‘I can’t see us losing too many players this year either, so hopefully we can give the flag a fair shake again this upcoming season.
‘‘We’re also hopeful that we can build a bit more depth by having regular numbers at training next season.
‘‘If there is anyone who has moved to town recently that would like to give cricket a go, they’re more than welcome to come train when we start.’’
The Rhinos will face the tough challenge of trying to secure back to back premierships next season.
That task has proven difficult recently with the last four premierships won by four different teams, with Nathalia completing their threepeat in 2016/17 followed by flag wins by
Barooga (2017/18), Cobram (2018/19) and the Rhinos (2019/20).
Arthur said the recent results prove just how close the MVCA competition is.
‘‘Every team needs to be able to bat and bowl deep, and more than half the competition can do that,’’ he said.
‘‘You just have to look at the last four premiership winners and also look at how much Katamatite improved in the 2019/20 season to see how tough it is to win back to back flags.
‘‘We only just edged our way over the line against Katty in the semi finals, so they could’ve easily taken it out last season.
‘‘All we know is that we want to defend our title, and in order to do that we need to work even harder and continue to improve.’’
Preparations for the upcoming season may also prove difficult, with a start date still not known due to the impact country footy season postponements may have on the start date for cricket.
If local footy does go ahead, it looks likely that the cricket season won’t start until November. It would usually start in early October.
Arthur said a later start would mean early wins become even more important.
‘‘There’s likely to be less games next season, so it’s crucial to get off to a good start,’’ he said.
‘‘We can’t make any plans as to when we start training until we know more, so that could make it that much tougher.
‘‘There are a lot of unknowns at the moment, but we will take each challenge as they come.’’
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