NEWPORT County AFC manager Terry Butcher has revealed his first three signings as he begins rebuilding his squad at Rodney Parade.

Goalkeeper Rhys Taylor and defender Scott Barrow have both signed from Macclesfield Town on one-year deals while former Grimsby Town striker Lenell John-Lewis has agreed to join the Exiles on a two-year contract following the Mariners Conference play-off final defeat to Bristol Rovers.

The new arrivals mean Butcher now has seven senior players signed up for the 2015/16 campaign following the 15 departures from last season's squad.

"All three players have been excited by our plans, and about the type of players we are planning to bring in," said the Exiles boss.

"Rhys played every game for Macclesfield last season, and was instrumental for them throughout the season.

"They just missed out on play offs but he put in some very good performances.

"He's a former Welsh international so we know we now have two quality 'keepers with Joe Day already here.

"There should be a really good contest between the two for the number one position."

Talking to the official County website, Butcher said that, whenever finances have allowed at a football club, his ideal is always to have two strong 'keepers as opposed to a younger back-up stopper.

"I always want excellent competition and camaraderie between the keepers," he said. "It means the keepers need to be on their toes all the time, they need to stay on their game all season, I have the feeling it will be a fascinating contest between the pair."

Butcher added: "Scott and Rhys are good pals, they played together at Macclesfield last year, so that's immediately a plus point.

"Scott is a very good defender who is comfortable on the ball. He's got a sweet left foot and scored a couple of great goals last season. He's a hard working lad who just wants to play."

The third signing of the day is Lenell John-Lewis who caught Butcher's eye after scoring 18 goals for Grimsby Town last season, including a play-off final goal at Wembley.

"I watched Lenell play in the final, where he scored the opening goal early on for Grimsby," he explained.

"He's a player who has been impressive all season, he's scored a good number of goals and has great energy levels.

"He works hard, is strong on the ball and can lead the line well. He gets goals and that's what we're after, he gets goals and makes goals for other players, I'm really excited by him.

"Lenell knows what the League is about having played with Bury recently. He's signed a two-year deal so we're looking for him to really make his mark this year and next year."

Butcher added that talks are progressing to an advanced stage with a couple more players, and he hopes to make announcements on their signing by the middle of next week.