At the Syd Barker Medal, senior coach Brad Scott strongly emphasised the need to bring the highly sought after specialist from Melbourne Storm into the fold.
"One area the players have heard me talk about on a weekly basis is our tackling and it's something that needs to improve significantly next year," Scott said.
"No doubt we'll see some significant improvement in that crucial area for us."
Looking at the tackling statistics for 2013, it's apparent how shrewd the appointment of Donehue is. North ranked below the league average in most facets related to tackling.
| 2013 | Tackle attempts | Tackles laid | Tackling efficiency (%) |
| North Melbourne | 2092 | 1289 | 61.6% |
| AFL average | 2210 | 1384 | 62.6% |
| Differential | -118 | -95 | -1% |
But perhaps the area where Brad Scott was focusing on the most was the tackling strength late in games. A prime example is the final term against Adelaide in Round 9.
Of the 41 attempted tackles by North - 17 still resulted in an effective Crows disposal. Donehue, formerly a bodyguard to a long list of VIPs including Nelson Mandela, will help turn it around.
His most recent role at AFL level was with the Power and their on-field resurgence speaks for itself.
During the home and away season, Port Adelaide laid the third most tackles in the competition and was the second most efficient side. It was a far cry from 2012.
| Port Adelaide | Total tackles | Effective tackles (%) |
| 2012 | 1313 | 62.6% |
| 2013 | 1477 | 66.1% |
| Differential | -164 | -3.5% |
Before Donehue's stint at the Power, he spent time at Carlton and had been at North once before in the mid 2000s. Coincidentally he was at the Blues when Chris Judd applied his infamous chicken wing tackle to Leigh Adams.
However former senior coach Brett Ratten was full of praise for what Donehue was able to achieve at the Blues.
"JD is a great teacher of men, maybe because they know what he can do physically to them, so maybe they do it in fear,'' Ratten told The Herald Sun's Jay Clark.
It shapes as an interesting first few sessions under Donehue out on the training track over the summer.
