North Melbourne has begun "weighing" up a potential move for contracted Melbourne premiership player Jake Lever in a bid to bolster its leadership at Arden Street.
The Kangaroos have been on the lookout for experienced players in recent years to assist in their rebuild, and have successfully lured Luke Parker, Jack Darling, Caleb Daniel and Aidan Corr in recent years.
The interest in Lever, albeit locked away at the Demons until the end of the 2028 season, comes amid an era of change at Melbourne after a tumultuous downfall since the 2021 premiership.
"One to keep an eye on, North Melbourne has preliminary interest in contracted Melbourne veteran Jake Lever," Channel 9's Tom Morris said.
North Melbourne is weighing up a move for Jake Lever in the trade period. Simon Goodwin has previously said his premiership defender is going nowhere. @FootyonNine @9NewsMelb https://t.co/C1TFTvgqlg
— Tom Morris (@tommorris32) July 29, 2025
"They've discussed him and are weighing up a possible move for him in the trade period."
The former Crow was dropped to the VFL earlier this year after a string of poor performances, according to his coach Simon Goodwin, which is understood to have "blindsided" the veteran.
"What I can tell you about Jake Lever is that he was so angry when he got dropped," Morris said on Footy Classified three weeks ago.
"He felt he was blindsided, as a result, he felt he was disrespected. He's not the only player that's going to be frustrated and angry when they get dropped.
"But for a senior player to feel this way, other clubs believe this is a watch now in this year's trade period.
"He's contracted until the end of 2028. Rival clubs are aware of how frustrated he was and how angry he was, and they're just keeping an eye on it now."
The Kangaroos have previously gone after Lever's teammate Jack Viney, who has a link to the Arden Street club through his father, Todd, who is the GM of Football.
