AFL 2021 preview: North Melbourne has set clear direction with list overhaul and new coach

You can’t have the most 26-29 year olds and finish 17th without taking major action. It was brutal but the Roos know where they are going.

Jay Clark

6 min read

January 9, 2021 - 7:59AM

News Corp Australia Sports Newsroom

North Melbourne return to training for 2021 AFL season

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A major list overhaul and a new coach. There’s been a lot of change at North Melbourne ahead of the 2021 season.

Jaidyn Stephenson’s shock arrival at Arden St from Collingwood is exciting but there are questions hanging over the former Rising Star winner.

Jack Ziebell and Ben Cunnington have been struck down by injuries and their importance, particularly the latter, has never been more important.

We look at how the Kangaroos are placed ahead of the 2021 season.

INS: Aidan Corr (GWS), Jaidyn Stephenson (Coll), Atu Bosenavulagi (Coll), Lachie Young (WB)

OUTS: Ben Brown (Melb), Shaun Higgins (Geel), Majak Daw (del), Paul Ahern (del), Jamie Macmillan (del), Jasper Pittard (del), Joel Crocker (del), Sam Durdin (del), Lachie Hosie (del), Ben Jacobs (del), Tom Murphy (del), Ed Vickers-Willis (del), Marley Williams (del), Mason Wood (del).

COACH STATUS

North Melbourne made a wise appointment making David Noble its new coach. Clearly, there will be bumps in the road ahead as the Roos undertake a full-scale rebuild of a cleaned-out list. And Noble, who brings a wealth of experience from a lifetime of footy across various roles, will be a steady driving force with an eye on the long game the Roos will need to play over the next three to five years. He is highly-respected, knowledgeable, organised, calm and a great communicator. Noble knows the game as well as anyone and North know his messages will be clear and the football department will be in sync. His openness and genuine approach around the football club has already impressed his colleagues.

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New coach David Noble takes charge at North Melbourne training. Picture: Ian Currie

GAME PLAN

The Kangaroos played a negative and dour style last season which took a big physical toll on the players. They liked to play the game through the congested side of the ground and relied on winning the ball at the contest, but when Ben Cunnington went down the Roos appeared to be going nowhere. When they had the ball, they kicked long down the line. By season’s end, it hadn’t won many admirers. Clearly, the Roos need to play a more open, expansive and attacking game style. Noble won’t be worrying about any fancy strategy or special tricks in his first season in charge, as the priority will be teaching the fundamentals and growing the players’ skills and confidence with a young list. But clearly the Roos will have the scope to show more flair and importantly play more of a forward half game as time progresses. Certainly, the game style will be more appealing to the eye of fans. The Roos have needed to draft more pressure small forwards in-line with the trends of the modern game as rivals have skipped clear of the Roos in this area in recent years. North Melbourne’s style was based around effort and pressure in 2020. They were direct with ball in hand and kept things simple due to the lack of personnel which was hit by injuries, losing the most games through injury of any side in the competition. The Kangaroos performances fell away in the back half of 2020 as well as their pressure and effort.

Stephenson in action at training. Picture: Ian Currie

Ex-Magpie Jaidyn Stephenson in his new colours. Picture: Jake Nowakowski

TRADE TABLE REPORT

The Roos needed speed and Jaidyn Stephenson and Aiden Corr bring loads of it. Corr was a great get for nothing as a free agent to help shore-up the back line and Stephenson is exactly the kind of young, quick and exciting goal scorer the Roos were after. His line breaking run, polish and goal sense will add another dangerous threat to the forward half. But it is fair to say the Rising Star winner also may benefit from the kick in the pants his exit from Collingwood may have also delivered. Stephenson needs to improve his off-field dedication and training ethic and it was a big part of the reason why the Pies punted one of their most talented youngsters on the cheap for pick No.26. If Stephenson can fix those things, he can be a forward half excitement machine for the next decade. Former Pies’ teammate Atu Bosenavulagi can also add some tackle pressure but needs to develop his skills on both sides. It hurt losing Ben Brown for a bargain-priced second-round pick to Melbourne, but the call to shop the contracted full forward early backfired somewhat as it dented his trade value. Western Bulldogs’ rebounding backman Lachie Young has upside after coming to the club for a late pick swap.

THEIR 2020 DRAFT HAUL

North backed in the maturity of No.3 pick Will Phillips and he is seen as a future leader. Big chance to be on the park for the opening rounds, and while he accumulates possessions there are concerns about the inside mid’s kicking accuracy. The Roos added some more midfield grunt with Tom Powell (pick 13), and with the ball magnet coming off a great year in the SANFL he would be expected to feature early next season. Roos fans might have a longer wait later before sighting smalls Charlie Lazzaro (pick 36) and Phoenix Spicer (pick 42), while forward Eddie Ford (pick 57) could also be a later bloomer.

Draftee Will Phillips will wear Brent Harvey’s old No.29 guernsey at the Kangaroos. Picture: Getty

PLAYERS THEY CAN REINVENT

This is a big call, but Jack Ziebell may need a change to the back line. Think Luke Hodge at Hawthorn and Brisbane. Ziebell has struggled with injury and has not had the impact he would have liked in the midfield or forward half over the past 12 months, averaging eight possessions a game over eight appearances in 2020. Perhaps a switch to a back flank where he can help direct traffic and use his physicality to help win the ball could help the Roos as they look to inject more youth over the next two seasons. It means Josh Walker could flick forward as the second marking target to partner Nick Larkey. Jared Polec is also an interesting one. The question is not whether they can reinvent Polec, it is whether the speedy wingman can recapture his old form. The midfielder had a weird year. He was dropped multiple times, moved inside midfield, lashed for his defensive capabilities, dropped again, put back in the team and then at the end of the year he was seen and discussed as a potential trade target. His head may have been all over the place. But his strengths can be elite. He is a prolific and hard-running playmaker who can really hurt the opposition. It will be interesting to see whether coach David Noble can help the former Port and Brisbane midfielder rediscover his top form because the Roos need his wheels on a wing.

Could Jack Ziebell benefit from a role change? Picture: Michael Klein

READY TO TAKE THE NEXT STEP

It has taken some time, largely due to some frustrating injuries, but Luke Davies-Uniacke’s finish to the season was one of the highlights of the North Melbourne year. The dashing midfielder has endured a frustrating start to his AFL career but some of his darting runs through the middle late showed the onballer’s confidence is rising at the top level. He was even likened to West Coast and Carlton champion Chris Judd for his toe. There are some superstar qualities there, and when you also consider Tarryn Thomas’s trick bag in the forward half, Cameron Zurhaar and Jed Anderson’s physicality, Jy Simpkin’s supreme class and the run of Bailey Scott, there is plenty to work with already. Nick Larkey has some Drew Petrie-traits, too. This young crop may have flown under the radar a touch over the past 12 months but there is some developing star power. North made some savage list cuts parting with 14 senior players but you can’t have the most 26-29 year old players in the league and finish 17th without taking major action. Like the boldness. North may have been stuck in no man’s land in the middle part of the ladder for a few years but the new administration has set a clear direction.