Gary Buckenara analyses North Melbourne’s needs and potential players to target during off-season

NORTH Melbourne needs star power but has it gone about trying to lure superstars the right way? GARY BUCKENARA ON NORTH’S NEEDS AND WHO THEY SHOULD TARGET

NORTH Melbourne has invested over the last two years in the rebuild of its list by making the draft its priority and viewing youth as the way forward.

But there is still a lot of work to be done.

The Kangaroos lack star power. There are plenty of OK players — honest players who play a role but they have limitations, particularly with their ball use. Who are the club’s marquee players? Who are the match-winners?

I’m thinking of guys like Sam Gibson, Jamie Macmillan, Sam Wright, Shaun Atley and Ben Jacobs — good players but they’re hardly untouchable.

Todd Goldstein hasn’t had his best season. Picture: Getty

And what’s happened to Todd Goldstein? There were murmurs last year he was gettable in a trade and this year again his name has been thrown up. Last year I wrote in my North Melbourne list analysis that Goldstein is North’s barometer. If he plays well, North play well. If he’s struggling then North struggles.

He is an untouchable in my opinion and North Melbourne need to do all they can to get him back to his best.

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I worry if North will rely on Braydon Preuss because I don’t believe he’d good enough to make the level.

That’s why Brad Scott and North Melbourne are on the record as saying it is chasing Dustin Martin and Josh Kelly because they lack A-grade players. There are some B-grade players but the list is mostly made up of C-graders and D-grade players (the ones who are developing and will take another 2-3 years).

Josh Kelly has reportedly been offered a huge deal by North Melbourne.

This list is a long way from winning a premiership.

Scott Thompson has done a brilliant job playing undersized for so many years but that’s got to be taking its toll on his body as he nears the end of his career. That means North Melbourne must be on the lookout and talking to any available or potentially available key position players.

The club’s other key position stocks — particularly down back — such as Sam Durdin are all young and at the start of their careers, so the club will need some experienced heads to provide leadership and guidance.

But that doesn’t mean the Kangaroos don’t need another key forward, because they do. Jarrad Waite is at the end of his career and given Majak Daw still hasn’t cemented his spot, another experienced tall should be on the shopping list while the likes of young prospect Ben McKay develop.

Could North Melbourne lure Nat Fyfe?

WHO THEY SHOULD TARGET

Kelly has reportedly been offered a mega deal and the Kangaroos have made it known publicly he is a priority but I’ve got concerns over that approach — all you’re doing is driving his price up and the player manager will sell Kelly, or any other player, to the highest bidder. It’s always better to be the ‘sleeper’.

Martin has already been linked but Nat Fyfe should be on the wish list as well because they want a big marquee player and the Brownlow medallist fits the bill.

North would be a good chance of landing one of those three because the club has a really good reputation. But if they don’t get one of them for whatever reason, key position players must be the next area to address.

Robbie Tarrant is an untouchable. Picture: Michael Klein

Steven May and free agent Jackson Trengove would be ideal targets down back and Sam Reid from Sydney would be very handy from a structure point of view but I worry about paying big money for players who are injured a lot. But he does offer versatility.

Ryan Schoenmakers would be another option who probably wouldn’t cost a lot in terms of money value and he’s a free agent.

UNTOUCHABLES

Jack Ziebell, Shaun Higgins, Todd Goldstein, Robbie Tarrant, Ben Brown, Jy Simpkin.

Please note: AFL clubs have a list of a number of players they are targeting at the end of the season and this is the list Gary Buckenara would have in the hope of luring at least one to the club.

Gary Buckenara was Hawthorn’s sole full-time recruiting staff member from 2004 before the Hawks brought in Chris Pelchen and then Graham Wright as recruiting and list manager and expanded the recruiting department.