On Friday night, there will be a host of Kangaroos eligible to receive the best young player award.

Eligible for anyone who had played less than 10 AFL games before the 2014 season, it was voted on by the North Melbourne coaching staff.

There were nine new players in the royal blue and white this year, the highest total since the 11 club debuts in 2006. With Nick Dal Santo and Robbie Nahas being ineligible for the award, it leaves the following players in with a chance.

- Luke McDonald (23 games)
- Ben Brown (11 games)
- Kayne Turner (6 games)
- Joel Tippett (4 games)
- Daniel Currie (4 games)
- Mason Wood (1 game)
- Max Warren (1 game)

McDonald is the heavy favourite to win, turning in a debut season which made many viewers forget his inexperience. Although he didn’t quite kick his heavily anticipated first goal, the left footer showed enough in his 23 games to suggest he’s well on the way to passing his father’s tally of 155 games for North Melbourne.

Ben Brown was the other eligible debutant to reach a double figure game tally. Selected with pick 47 in the 2013 National Draft, his first season looked to be more of a development year after the key forward missed most of the pre-season.

Despite that, Brown made his senior debut in Round 14 and quickly became an important part of the forward line – North averaged approximately three goals more per game when the Tasmanian was in the line-up.

While Brown was playing his role as a key forward, the story of the year was his running mate at ground level in Kayne Turner.

The youngest player in the AFL and only eligible for the 2013 draft class by a handful of hours, North selected Turner with pick 25 in the Rookie Draft.

Turner’s rise was rapid, and he debuted in Round 20 against the GWS Giants in Canberra. The forward pressure at ground level instantly endeared him to teammates, coaches and supporters alike and the schoolboy quickly became a beloved figure.

A pair of mature age recruits made their North Melbourne debuts this season – Joel Tippett and Daniel Currie played four games each. Tippett had played two games with Gold Coast in 2011, while Currie spent time with Sydney without registering a senior game.

Mason Wood and Max Warren both played a single match for the Kangaroos against Melbourne and Brisbane respectively.