Close but not close enough: a review of North Melbourne’s season

by Lucas Lewit-Mendes and Philip Mendes

What went Right?

A) North Melbourne won seven games in a row to make the finals, and then completed two outstanding finals victories to reach the Preliminary Final.

B) With some exceptions, there was less inconsistency between and within games. North were not quite as flaky as in previous years.

C) The coach also seemed to lift his game. Brad Scott returned from his back operation with new ideas, and a more flexible game strategies.

D) Ruckman Todd Goldstein was a tower of strength not only in ruck duels, but all round the ground. Not surprisingly, he earned all-Australian selection, and finished Top ten in the Brownlow.

E) Ben Cunnington may still be underrated outside the club. But he is an outstanding contested ball winner, arguably second only to Sam Mitchell amongst his contemporaries in handball skills, and ultra-consistent in performance.

F) Mature age recruits Shaun Higgins and Jarrad Waite easily met expectations. Higgins provided classy finishing all season, and made the all-Australian squad. Waite started the season slowly and frustrated supporters with some bizarre errors near goal. But by the second half of the year, he was holding the big marks and kicking the crunch goals. He was crucial to North’s final victories against Richmond and Sydney.

G) Long-time under-achiever Robbie Tarrant improved out of sight. He became stronger and quicker, and effectively countered a number of big forwards. It was easily his best season.

H) Sam Wright has struggled with consistency in the past as either a small back or forward. But this year, he continued his good form from the 2014 finals, and provided precise disposal from the backline.

I) Dasher Shaun Atley had a poor start to the season, and rightly got dropped after the Collingwood game. But he returned to provide solid run and dash reminiscent of his break-out year in 2012.

J) Jamie Macmillan also started the season slowly and was hampered by injury, but enjoyed a very solid second half of the year. Could be a future Club captain.

K) Former first round draft pick Taylor Garner finally got on the park regularly and showed lots of potential in the second half of the year. He was particularly good in the first final against Richmond and showed he can hurt the opposition with a small number of disposals.

L) Boomer Harvey, Drew Petrie and Michael Firrito continued to prove they were ‘golden oldies’, while Scott Thompson was tight as always in the backline.

M) Ben Jacobs finally found an effective role as a tagger

What went Wrong?

A) The game plan and team structure was not as consistent as the top sides. North were still prone to lose matches to weaker teams such as Collingwood and Gold Coast. They also went missing for a quarter or even two quarters against poor sides such as St Kilda, Carlton and Melbourne.

B) Some mature players stagnated. Ryan Bastinac is neither quick nor able to win contested ball, so he needs to find some new tricks to continue his AFL career. Lindsay Thomas seemed to lose his way after the change in the rule regarding head-high tackles. The foot injury obviously didn’t help but he needs to regain his mojo.

C) Our younger players did not play enough games. They need to gain experience so that they’re ready when the likes of Boomer, Firrito and Petrie retire. This includes Kayne Turner, who continued to show potential in patches. Unfortunately, Luke McDonald had the second year blues after an outstanding first season. Trent Dumont is a contested ball machine, but needs a bit more composure, which will come with more games. Mason Wood has the capacity to kick goals if he gains regular senior selection. The three 2014 draft picks: Sam Durdin, Daniel Neilson and Ed Vickers-Willis did not play at all due to season-ending injuries. They need more luck in 2016.

D) North had too many list cloggers who are not up to AFL standard. But Nathan Grima and Leigh Adams have retired, and Scott McMahon, Max Warren and Eric Wallace have been delisted. Kieran Harper will probably be delisted, and ditto Daniel Currie and Joel Tippett. Brad McKenzie is a first round pick who has played only 23 games in four years including one game in 2015. Majak Daw has played only 16 games in three years, but may stay as insurance for Goldstein. Aaron Black has been a flop for the past two years on a big salary. Veteran skilled midfielder Daniel Wells has hardly played for the last two years and his career is arguably at the crossroads.

What needs to change to progress further?

A) North still need greater leg speed in the midfield. We lack a skilled user of the ball who can transform a game with a few bounces and a long goal, such as Dangerfield, Shuey, Motlop… or Harley Bennell…

B) Our strong contested ball winners such as Jack Ziebell and Andrew Swallow need to improve their disposal, which means kicking less and handballing more, based on the Priddis/Mitchell model.

C) We would benefit from the addition of a precise kicker running the ball out of the back line such as Heath Shaw or Matt Suckling.

Our Starting 22 for 2016:

B: Hansen Tarrant MacMillan
HB: Atley Thompson Wright
C: Bennell Swallow Dal Santo
HF: Boomer Waite Higgins
F: Brown Petrie Thomas
R: Goldy Cunnington Ziebell
INT: Jacobs Dumont Wells* Garner

*Wells if fit, otherwise Turner or McDonald depending on injuries/form.

About Philip Mendes

Philip Mendes is an academic who follows AFL, soccer, tennis and cricket. He supported Fitzroy Football Club from 1970-1996, and on their death he adopted the North Melbourne Kangaroos as his new team. In his spare time, he occasionally writes about his current and past football teams.

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