North Melbourne’s VFL side endured a tough practice match against Sandringham on Saturday morning, going down by 42 points at Arden St Oval.
Despite being down by just nine points up at half-time, Sandringham proved to be too strong for a young North group in the second half.
VFL coach Leigh Adams was impressed with his team's performance today, regardless of the outcome on the scoreboard.
“Sandringham played more players and had more rotations. Eventually, that’s going to catch you up,” Adams told North Media.
“I thought our ball pressure was really good for a longer period of time [this week] … we had some really good opportunities and moved the ball well at times.
“We’re not getting bang for our buck at the moment … we had about 20 shots on goal today and didn’t make the most of those chances.”
Rookie Will Phillips continued to increase his game time as he seeks match fitness going into the season, playing in the first half of today’s clash.
Adams says he was impressed by Phillips’ performance and believes there’s much more to come from the young midfielder.
“Today was a good step forward for Will,” he said.
“For him to come back and play a half after getting a quarter against Hawthorn … he was clean and really good in the contest.
“It’s a good experience for him to play against some good players like Zak Jones and Brad Crouch and he held his own.
“He’s still got some areas to work on, but I thought he played really well to his strengths today.”
With a host of other AFL-listed players taking part in the game, Atu Bosenavulagi and Eddie Ford impressed, while Tom Campbell was an influential leader in the middle of the ground.
Phoenix Spicer managed to showcase some of his elite potential and speed, and Will Walker looked solid as he continues to increase his game load.
“(Bosenavulagi) defended really well … he was really clean around the contest today … and had nice bits of play with his offence,” Adams said.
“(Ford) got better as the game went on and that’s a credit to him … it was a good effort for him to break his nose and get back out there and compete.
“(Campbell’s) ability to win clearances, follow up and take marks was great. He was outstanding today.
“He’s been doing it for years in the VFL … he’s really been able to bring the group together and has been educating our young blokes.
