North Melbourne urged to consider putting top draft pick on trade table, targets, star forwards, Oscar Allen, Jake Waterman, Tom Lynch, Noah Balta, Mitch Lewis, Jack Lukosius, latest news

North Melbourne is quickly emerging from the other side of a long and painful rebuild only to suddenly face a question it might not have considered earlier this year: could it put its first-round draft pick on the trade table?

The Kangaroos, led by their brigade of budding young stars including a core of Harry Sheezel, Luke Davies-Uniacke, George Wardlaw, Colby McKercher, Tristan Xerri, Charlie Comben and Nick Larkey, have come down from the bottom of the ladder after a promising month.

It includes wins over West Coast and Gold Coast and narrow defeats to reigning premier Collingwood (by one point) and Melbourne (by three points) from a young Roos group that is blossoming before our eyes and building confidence with each passing week.

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With games against Richmond and West Coast to come, there is a strong chance the Roos can avoid a fifth consecutive finish in the bottom two of the standings. Not only would that be a tangible sign of progress, it would also give the club one lesser pick they could consider trading away.

That comes ahead of a draft loaded with on-ball stars at point end, while North has largely built its roster from the midfield up and prioritized that part of the field with its high-end picks.

The Roos already have their long-term midfield core essentially intact with Sheezel, Davies-Uniacke, Wardlaw, McKercher and Xerri.

Could North then consider trading Pick 2 or 3 to a club that has a greater need for a top-tier midfielder? And either target a big name or share the pick?

“They’re going to get Pick 2 or 3, let’s say they’re going to stay down the list. Do they really need another midfielder? Because everyone talks about the top of the draft list, it’s the midfielders,” Saints legend Leigh Montagna said on Fox Footy The first crack.

“I don’t think they will, I think they already have a lot of talent in midfield. So, are they going to offer Pick 2 or 3 to other clubs?

“They’ve got a ruckman (Xerri) and they can build around Comben in defence. They need support for Larkey. Is there someone there they can dangle the choice to, to support Larkey?

“If it’s a possibility, I would definitely look into it.”

WHO COULD THEY CONTACT?

As Montagna pointed out, the Roos largely need to prioritise their forward half of the pitch and add more threats.

Right now, Nick Larkey is being relied upon to score a game-winning goal, while North’s second-leading scorer, Cam Zurhaar, could well leave as a free agent.

While some argue the Roos are still short at fullback – with Comben, Griffin Logue and Aidan Corr largely making up their key defensive positions – Alastair Clarkson’s side have tightened up defensively, helped of course by the improvement in midfield.

North have conceded an average of just 82.8 points since Matchday 12, having previously conceded 118 points.

Also, could you sign an Adam Tomlinson or Caleb Marchbank type player as a free agent and not give up anything in terms of a trade?

If the Roos were to put their top pick on the table – or at least include him as part of a bigger deal – they would have to think big.

Unfortunately, all of the star forwards once on the market, including Ben King, Aaron Naughton and Jamarra Ugle-Hagan, have re-signed with their current clubs.

They will therefore have to be creative.

Starting with Hail Mary targets, Oscar Allen and Jake Waterman from West Coast would be perfect to play alongside Larkey at North Melbourne.

And while both Allen, 25, and Waterman, 26, feel untouchable, that could put the Eagles in position to have two top-three picks plus their second-round pick to help aggressively accelerate their rebuild.

Sure, this sounds fanciful and is your dream scenario.

In a similar vein, Hawthorn’s Mitch Lewis has Coleman Medal potential but has struggled to stay on the field due to injuries. Could this be the perfect time to convince the Hawks to part ways with him?

More realistically, Richmond may be the ideal trade partner given its need to add high-end young talent and with a few names that could interest North.

While a straight swap is a possibility from the Roos’ perspective, Richmond’s Tom Lynch, 31, and Noah Balta, 24, are two names that could also make sense.

The Tigers sit at No. 18 and haven’t had a first-round draft pick in two years, so they might also be tempted by the lure of having two top-three selections.

Would a trade where Richmond gets pick 2 or 3 and North Melbourne gets Lynch or Balta plus a pick in the 15-20 range be a win-win?

Gold Coast’s Jack Lukosius, who kicked 39 goals last year, is reportedly on the trade table as the Roos are also expected to consider a move. Although he is yet to prove himself as a forward, Melbourne’s Harrison Petty also looks interesting but is more likely to return home to South Australia.

Again, it’s very difficult to find a deal where both sides walk away happy when one club parts with a proven weapon and another parting with a top-three pick that could be anything but is an unknown quantity.

SHOULD THEY PRIORITIZE THE PROJECT AGAIN?

Only Essendon (12) and Gold Coast (11) have more top-10 picks on their list than North Melbourne, which has 10.

The Roos have prioritised the draft in recent years, including bringing in Will Phillips (Pick 3) and Tom Powell (Pick 13) in 2020, Sheezel (Pick 3) and Wardlaw (Pick 4) in 2022 and McKercher (Pick 2) and Zane Duursma last year.

North’s 2023 draft picks also included Taylor Goad (pick 20), Will Dawson (pick 22) and Riley Harderman (pick 23), so there’s already a ton of exciting young talent at Arden Street.

Kangaroos legend David King on Fox Footy The first crack stressed that “talent solves all problems,” with the top 10 players ranked in the competition in 2024 being mostly top-tier players.

“You have to find your stars and your torchbearers early in the draft,” King said.

“How do you acquire these players? Do you trade for them? Father-son partnerships and academies are a great way to progress.

“Right now, nothing solves problems like talent. If you don’t have it, you have to find it… It’s a five- or six-year process.”

To which Leigh Montagna replied: “That’s why North Melbourne is in good shape for the future.”

Indeed, the North has already gone through this process of reconstruction and is doing well.

The club is entering a phase where it will have to decide whether it believes it has acquired the young talent needed to lead it to its next championship – and thus be more aggressive from a trade and free agency perspective – or whether it should continue to enter the draft.

We’ve seen rebuilding teams progress faster than expected over the years – a position the North could find itself in next year.

As previously mentioned, the Kangaroos are also well stocked in midfield ahead of a draft full of over-the-ball players.

So even if North didn’t think he was ready to pursue a big name or there wasn’t a logical deal, he could also look to split his first pick for later selections and continue to attract more talent.

Top 10 Highest Rated AFL Players in 2024

1. Marcus Bontempelli (Pick 4)

2. Isaac Heeney (Pick 18 (academy))

3. Nick Daicos (Pick 4 (father-son))

4. Patrick Cripps (Pick 13)

5. Izak Rankine (Pick 3)

6. Matt Rowell (Pick 1)

7. Zak Butters (Pick 12)

8. Max Gawn (Pick 34)

9. Caleb Serong (Pick 8)

10. Christian Petracca (Pick 2)

Top 10 Picks in North Melbourne

Luke McDonald (Pick 8 (father-son))

Griffin Logue (Pick 8 via Fremantle)

Dylan Stephens (Pick 5 via Sydney)

Luke Davies-Uniacke (Pick 4)

Jaidyn Stephenson (Pick 7 via Collingwood)

Will Phillips (Pick 3)

Harry Sheezel (Choice 3)

George Wardlaw (Choose 4)

Colby McKercher (Pick 2)

Zane Duursma (Pick 4)