If Jarrad Waite is fit to take on Adelaide in next Saturday’s Elimination Final, the structure of North’s forward line will be one of hot debate.
Waite has missed the last month after minor hip surgery, but is nearing contention for a recall.
Ben Brown understands the dilemma it raises.
“We’d love to have Jarrad back, and he’s got a couple of big training sessions over the next two weeks to prove his fitness,” Brown told media on Thursday.
“We’d love to have him back, but while that’s the case, we’ve had Majak Daw come in and do some really good things for us.
“Whichever team we go in with, we know we’ve got good depth and guys that have been playing good footy in the VFL.”
The larger issue is centred round North’s ability to hit the scoreboard regularly.
In recent weeks the Roos’ scoring power has dropped off considerably. With Adelaide’s dangerous goal-kickers to contend with at the opposite end of the field, North’s ball use is a point of emphasis.
“I think we need to do some work on our movements forward and going inside 50, and we’ll have a bit of focus on that over the next couple of weeks,” Brown said.
“For us it’s a bit of an all-round focus (as well). The midfield has been doing a really good job of winning the ball and getting it forward, it’s just a bit of efficiency we need to work on.”
It’s only Brown’s third year on an AFL list, yet he’s getting ready for his seventh career final.
The 23-year-old’s career-best game so far was arguably in his very first final, when he kicked four goals against Essendon as part of a stirring second half comeback.
“I’ve been pretty lucky in that I’ve played a finals series ever since I’ve got to the club, which is something not a lot of blokes get to do,” Brown admitted.
“I think we can take what we can from the last couple of years and take a bit of confidence out of that, but we’ve just got a big test next week against Adelaide (to focus on).
“We’ve got an Elimination Final and the winner moves on. At the end of the day, we want that to be us.”
The pre-finals bye has been a major talking point during the week.
But after Shaun Higgins explained how the break would benefit him, Brown had a similar point of view.
“It’s a good thing for us. Most players at this time of year are looking for a bit of a break, so we take the week off and really look forward to build into next weekend,” he added.
“It’s a good chance to reset and go into finals with a really fresh mind and ready to take on Adelaide.
“For a couple of us it’s a chance to rest the body ahead of a big finals series. We know it’s going to be a big week or so now.”
Ultimately, North is setting itself for its biggest test of 2016.
“We’ll go in with confidence,” said Brown.
