Aaron Black is one of North Melbourne's in-form youngsters and the 22-year old is excited to play his first game in royal blue and white on his home soil.

The forward from Bunbury has played on Patersons Stadium in his junior years but never as a Kangaroo.  Black says he's looking forward to playing his eighth AFL game with some special guests in the stands.

"It is pretty good to be able to play in front of family and friends. They're all making the trip up to watch which is exciting," Black told NMFC.com.au.

"Having family and friends here is definitely a bit more exciting but it's just an added bonus. I won't take it any differently but it's just good to have them here.

The biggest ground in the AFL could be a daunting prospect for an inexperienced player but Black is looking forward to the challenge and the even bigger task of coming up against West Coast's wealth of experienced players.

"I do like playing there (Patersons Stadium), like most WA grounds it is very big. As a forward I don't mind it, there's plenty of open space to run around and lead into.

"West Coast; their key defenders are really solid. It will be a tough match not just for us forwards, but the whole team. Me, Maj (Majak Daw) and Drewy (Drew Petrie) have been working well over the past few weeks so if we can continue improving, we can hopefully work them over and get on top of them."

Black knows the key to being a good AFL player means studying up on the opposition.

"During the week and even last week, we always look through vision of each opposition player, what their strengths are and what their weaknesses are, so that's really important to do your research and study before heading out there.

"Both us and the Eagles are three wins, four losses so it's a really important game for us. And Friday night footy is pretty special, we don't get many of them."

No matter what the result on Friday night, Black will have the support of his loved ones and he's grateful to have a little extra time with them before making the trip back to Melbourne.

"The boys head back Saturday morning but I'm going to stay on an extra night after the game," he said.

"I'll go out to dinner with the family, see all my nieces and nephews and my sisters.

"It's really good to be able to catch up with them because you really don't get much time during the season and I'm really grateful Brad and the club has allowed me to have that."