North Melbourne has hit the ground running, literally.
On day one of pre-season, the Kangaroos unearthed four new faces, headed by the monster trade for Sydney's Nick Blakey.
Elijah Tsatas, Samson Ryan and Darragh Joyce all joined the Arden Street club last week via delisted free agency as their times at Essendon, Richmond and Brisbane came to an end.
Young defender Riley Hardeman immediately noticed the quartet, and complemented the recruiting and list management team to bring in the established players.
"It was really good for our recruiting team to bring in a few delisted free agents and Nick," Hardeman said.
"We've got the young faces that are really keen to develop around here. It's good to bring in some more AFL experience to solidify our list, and they've hit the ground running as well.
"They're going to adapt and buy into what we're building, which is exciting."
Another fresh face (relatively) is new senior coach Jaymie Graham, who was appointed to replace the void left by Alastair Clarkson following his sacking in September.
Graham came across to the Kangaroos after playing a crucial role in Fremantle's coaching line-up alongside Justin Longmuir. The Dockers were nine points away from winning the 2026 AFL Grand Final.
Graham has insisted on bringing a stronger defensive output to the Kangaroos, who have traditionally struggled. This was reflected when the club acquired Blakey to help out in the back half, as well as their attempt to lure contracted Adelaide tall Nick Murray.
Instead, they secured Joyce on the cheap to play alongside the improving Charlie Comben and veteran pair Aidan Corr and Griffin Logue.
"We're really excited to be under 'JG' (Graham) and him implementing new philosophies," Hardeman said.
"He's already sought out every player individually, caught up with them, talked to them about who they are as a person and his expectations of you.
"That really stood out just as to what sort of character he is. He's all about building connection.
"He sat us down and talked about what his themes are going to be for the year and there's clear expectations around that."
