North’s Match Committee is facing a problem ahead of Round 1.
The problem however, is a good one to have, and one which the coaches are more than happy to handle.
North’s near perfect pre-season on the injury front means the Match Committee has almost 40 players to choose from, which is set to cause headaches for the team selectors.
“Selection is going to be really difficult,” Defensive Coach Josh Drummond told North Media.
“In the back half of last year, we didn’t have quite as many to pick from which always makes it a bit harder, so it’s a great problem to have.
“From the playing group’s point of view, the challenge has been for them to put their best foot forward and put their hand up for selection.”
Every available player has been given the opportunity to prove themselves to the Match Committee throughout the pre-season, either in the JLT Community Series or in last weekend’s VFL practice match.
“With the JLT Series and the nature of the shorter competition, we have so many guys fit and healthy on our list, so we had 20-odd play in the VFL on the weekend,” Drummond said.
“It’s rare that we have so many play in a game like that.”
North debuted a league-high 11 players last season, all of whom are hungry to build on their AFL experiences in 2018.
“We obviously have a much younger squad now than we had a few years ago, so there were a lot of guys who are on the cusp and had their taste of it last year, enjoyed that taste, and want a bit more,” Drummond said.
While there will be plenty of opportunities for the Roos' emerging youngsters, there's a fine balance in also selecting a team capable of matching it with the best.
“First and foremost we go into every week trying to win the game,” he added.
“This time of year is exciting because everyone starts on a level playing field.
“Obviously with the nature of our squad we have a lot more younger guys, so the young guys are going to play, and that in itself will bring opportunity, but first and foremost we want to pick a team that’ll win.”
The Cairns weather throws another variable in the conversation, with a chance of thunderstorms for Saturday night's clash against the Suns.
Having played his entire AFL career in Queensland, Drummond is acutely aware of the unpredictability of the weather in that part of the country, and says the coaches will put plans in place in the event of unforeseen conditions.
“We’ll chat about conditions or potential conditions in the lead-up to the game, because it’s a bit of an unknown,” he said.
“Being from up that way, storms can come and go pretty quickly so we expect it to be slippery at the very least, but we’ll wait to see on the night what it brings.
“I dare say we’ll pick our team and have contingencies if things do come to fruition, but I don’t think we’ll be changing too much.”
North’s team will be officially announced on Thursday evening at 6.25pm AEDT.
