North Melbourne greats praise the Kangaroos for going after Dustin Martin and Josh Kelly

THROWING fistfuls of cash at the best young players in the game - is North Melbourne going back to the future? The Roos have pulled this play before and got the ultimate reward.

North Melbourne is chasing Dustin Martin. Picture: AAP Images

TWO key targets in North Melbourne’s famous 1970s recruiting spree want Josh Kelly and Dustin Martin to take the fistfuls of cash and follow their high-profile moves to Arden St.

But list expert Gary Buckenara says the Kangaroos could have to blow Richmond’s offer away by $400,000 per season — totalling an extra $2.4 million — to lure Brownlow fancy Martin.

Former Hawthorn recruiter Buckenara believes Kelly is worth at least two first-round picks and doubted Greater Western Sydney would be interested in dumped ruckman Todd Goldstein while Shane Mumford is fit.

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Martin and Kelly will face off at the MCG on Sunday as they weigh up offers totalling more than $15 million to join the Roos.

North’s aggressive list strategy is out of the 1972 playbook, when club powerbrokers exploited the 10-year rule to poach rival captains Doug Wade (Geelong), Barry Davis (Essendon) and John Rantall (South Melbourne).

The VFL quickly shutdown the rule, but the raid on champions helped the Kangas break their premiership duck in 1975 and set up the club’s most successful era under coach Ron Barassi.

Dustin Martin. Picture: AAP Images

Josh Kelly. Picture: Getty Images

North Melbourne legend Brent Harvey on Friday said the club desperately needed a “franchise player” who would boost performance both on and off the field.

Rantall recounted how then-president Allen Aylett, Albert Mantello and Ron Joseph came to his house with a bag stuffed with $10,000 in $20 notes and swayed him to leave South Melbourne.

“We were only getting $40 or $50 a game and then all of a sudden you’re thrown $10,000 to sign and $10,000 to play,” Rantall said.

“It was just a huge explosion of money. I’d just bought a house for $13,000 in Mulgrave and I had two mortgages on it.”

Rantall collected $2000 from Swans coach Norm Smith for his house deposit before the “extraordinary” deal came from the Kangas.

“I just about collapsed, I couldn’t believe it. They say lightning never strikes in the same place twice, but the (Kelly-Martin double play) is certainly reminiscent of ours,” Rantall said.

“It would be an enormous boost to the club, to the supporters and to (coach Brad) Scott’s long-term plan.

“It certainly does remind me of what happened. The North Melbourne board back in my day were just so far in front of the rest of the other boards.

“It’s marvellous what two — or three — really good players can do. You only have to look at us back then.”

The Kangas lost the 1974 Grand Final and started the next season 0-4. While the pressure was fierce, Rantall said it was shared among the recruits.

“At first we weren’t really accepted by the other players. There was some animosity … but once we started performing it was all forgotten,” Rantall said.

Davis worried the high price tags could bring criticism should Kelly or Martin underperform, as Tom Boyd suffered last season before delivering the Dogs a premiership.

Buckenara backed North’s bold strategy to ensure they don’t fall off the radar.

“They need to do something pretty big … and get a big deal done for their own credibility,” he said.

If reports the Tigers have tabled Martin a six-year offer worth $1.1 million are true, Buckenara said the Kangas had to “blow it away” or tack on more years, like Lance Franklin’s contract at Sydney.

Originally published as North Melbourne greats praise the Kangaroos for going after Dustin Martin and Josh Kelly