Shaun Atley says the emergence of the Suns' younger brigade in 2013 was always expected.

A product of the same National Draft as several of the Gold Coast's best up-and-comers, Atley puts the improvement down to one thing - confidence.

"Their young guys just seem to be realising their talent and starting to know how each other plays, and starting to come together and get the wins on the board," he told NMFC.com.au.

"After a couple of years in the AFL system, you start to realise that you're not one of the younger guys anymore. You start to know what's going on. You don't know everything, you are still learning but you just a feel bit more confident in what you're doing."

Selected with pick 17 in the 2010 Draft, Atley played alongside and against the likes of Tom Lynch, Dion Prestia and Trent McKenzie.

"When I played against McKenzie he was sort of skinny but always had a huge kick on him. Now he's got a bit more size and he can still kick it a long way. We are going to have to watch out for him this weekend.

"I played with Prestia back in the under 15's at Vic Country. He's always been really strong in the contest despite his size.

"He's got a good kick as well. His ability to win the ball for Gold Coast has been something that's improved greatly this year."

While Saturday night's clash at Metricon Stadium would have been marked in for a North win by many at the start of the season, it now looms as one of the most important matches of Round 11.

The Suns pushed Geelong all the way at Simonds Stadium last week, and sit just one spot below the Kangaroos on the ladder.

"They were really impressive (against the Cats). All I was thinking about was the challenge it'd be when we'd have to play them next week," Atley added.

"It'll be tough going up there; I think they've won their last few at Metricon so it'll be a test for us, but one we'll be looking forward to."

The lightning-quick defender will line up for game 50 this week and paid tribute to Brad Scott for the faith he showed in him when he arrived at the club.

"I've been really lucky. My first year I played 15 or 16 games, so for my development that was really important.

"I probably wasn't playing that well but I was still getting game-time which is what you need when you are a young kid just to get that confidence and be able to develop."

Atley admits 2013 has been an up-and-down season personally, but is confident he's on the right track.

"It hasn't been as consistent as I would have liked. There's a few things I need to concentrate on to continue improving.

"I think I've got the license to run and create, but Brad (Scott) always says you've got to defend first before you can get the ball back, so that's the number one thing to focus on."

With the bye next round and the prospect of playing some seasoned opponents in the run home, North faces an uphill battle to make the finals.

"It's going to be tough with the start to the year we've had, but most of the boys are still in high spirits and looking forward to the rest of the year.

"We're only two wins out of the eight, and when you look at last year we managed to win 10 out of the last 11 and made the finals, people had written us off half-way through the year.

"The mentality of the group is reallly good. We're going into games with a lot more confidence and knowing we can beat the sides. I think we're around the mark, but if we can just fix a few more little things that we've been focusing on in our reviews that'll go a long way towards success."