Daniel Wells is as important as an other player who'll be running onto the MCG for tonight's blockbuster Elimination Final. While the Roos have had to play without him for the majority of the year, the 29-year-old dual best and fairest winner's return is, and has always been, critical to their chances of success.

With no Brent Harvey, his inclusion is even more vital than normal.

“We all love ‘Boomer’ and it’s amazing to see the way he has played this year," Wells told the Herald Sun.

“But those who saw him training in pre-season wouldn’t be surprised. His form has been a testament to his pre-season and he is someone who never misses a session and wants to compete with all the younger players. I think his competitiveness keeps him going.”

A win against the Bombers means Boomer's season will continue. But more than that, Wells knows it gives North a chance for redemption after a poor finals record in recent times.

“We’ve had just the one win in finals against Hawthorn in 2007. They are so tough to get in. Back then there was Drew (Petrie), Boomer (Harvey) and Spud (Michael Firrito) and now we want to make sure the young ones at the club get a really good taste which will drive them to keep going back for more,” Wells said.

“We all have to enjoy the experience. That’s why it’s good having Nick Dal Santo because he has played in a lot of finals and he has been able to help with how the week goes. His leadership has been very important to us and he has shared his wisdom.”

Selected with pick No. 2 in the 2002 draft, Wells numbers just one win from six finals in his 219 games. Although he'll be slightly underdone fitness-wise with only two games under his belt since Round 5, Wells will make no excuses and neither will any of his team-mates.

The future is now for Wells and the club, and he knows the coming years will define his career and the team.

“We have some young boys who are exciting and you want to be part of their development. I have another year of my contract to go and would love to play on after that given the team we have coming together,” Wells said.

“And I love playing under Brad (Scott). It’s a fantastic time for the club. We have shown this year we can play good football against good opposition and we also understand we have had some lapses.

“But we think we know why we have been up and down. We didn’t play that well against Essendon in Round 1 (39-point loss) but that was a long time ago, so it means nothing this week.”