Newly appointed North Melbourne skipper Nick Larkey has backed in his predecessor Jy Simpkin to have a big 2026 after the midfielder requested a move away from Arden Street during the 2025 trade period.
Jy Simpkin's trade request came as a surprise to most, including his teammates, as Nick Larkey highlighted to NMFC Media, but his desired exit ultimately fell through on deadline day.
However, Larkey says there is no tension between the group and Simpkin, praising the leadership of the Indigenous All-Star, who had been battling mental health issues during 2025 but remained at his damaging best, averaging a career-high 5.4 score involvements per game.
"What I will say about Jy's leadership is that he's led the club through the toughest times in North Melbourne history," Larkey said on Tuesday.
"The way that he's handled himself has been first class, and the way he's been able to keep the group together. You see that from how many boys want to stick around, and that's off the back of the culture of the club, and it's been set by him.
"Jy's spoken openly about how he was feeling last year, but his ability to actually put the mask on for the boys and not have that permeate through the group is a sign of great leadership, in my opinion.
"The way he can not let his external stuff going on in his life affect the psyche and mood of the whole team. It's why it caught guys by surprise when he wanted to depart.
"Now that he's still here, I'm super grateful because he's a really good leader. I hope the step down and weight of responsibility off his shoulders can help him go back to enjoying football.
"A lot of the slander he might have copped was really unfair because he's given so much to the football club."
Larkey headlines a new-look six-player leadership unit following Simpkin's step-down from the role. It includes four first-time leaders in Luke Davies-Uniacke, Tristan Xerri, Cam Zurhaar and Charlie Comben, while emerging superstar Harry Sheezel will remain in his position as vice-captain.
The 27-year-old spearhead said that being named captain was a "huge honour" and highlighted his priorities as the face of the club moving forward.
"I want to be a captain that instils as much belief and faith in the players at the club so we can all play a brand of footy that the club and our fans can be proud of," Larkey said.
"We've been trying to do that for so long, but if I can make the boys as confident and good about themselves and their football, then I feel that will be a job done, and the footy will come off the back of that.
"It's a huge honour and really exciting to have this title. It comes with a lot of weight and responsibility, but I've watched and been under some great leaders at the club, and I can take a lot of leaves out of their book.
"It's a really special feeling that they've got faith in me to do that job, and it's something I'm immensely proud of."
The Kangaroos will be aiming to give their new captain greater delivery inside forward 50 in 2026 to get Larkey back to his 70-goal ceiling, opening their season against Port Adelaide on Sunday, March 15.
