North Melbourne coach Brad Scott has called for his playing list to show the same “steely determination” in 2019 as they did at the start of the 2018 season.
After being all but written off by most of the external media, Scott’s squad surpassed expectations throughout the season, only missing a finals berth by a single game.
“I’m trying to bribe some of the journalists to write us off again, because if we get the same determination that our boys showed this year, then the upside is enormous,” Scott joked during his speech at the Syd Barker Medal.
Scott is hopeful that the playing group are as ready as they were last year to prove the critics wrong, and to improve as a team.
“With some of expectations and things said about us at the start of this year, our players were determined to prove them wrong.
“We're going to come back with that steely determination that we had at the start of this year, and continue to look to improve and get better, and we will take another step forward in 2019.”
With plenty of noise being made about North Melbourne’s intentions in the trade window, Scott confirmed that the club is in the market for the right player.
“This list has an enormous scope for improvement.
“A lot of teams think bringing in players is the answer, and we saw contrasting results with this last year.
“But we're in a competition that if you take the foot off the accelerator at all, you won't succeed.”
Although keen to improve the squad, Scott paid tribute to the current list that has been built by the football department.
“Our list management have done an exceptional amount of work over the years to get us into this position, and I’m sure you’ll see the fruits of our labour in the coming weeks.”
A famous friendship and partnership on and off the field for North in recent years, the coach had plenty of nice words for retiring forward Jarrad Waite.
“I can't say much more about Jarrad Waite than I already have.
“He's an amazing person, a great talent, and I'm honoured to have coached him.”
A club is nothing without it’s loyal supporters, which Scott made sure to address his appreciation to the legion of loyal Shinboners.
“We exist to serve our members and loyal fans.
“We appreciate your support every week when we play, and we need it more than ever in 2019”
