Todd Goldstein says North will continue to fine-tune its midfield rotation over the coming weeks, leading into Round 1.

With several new faces in the team, the ruckman admits finding the perfect chemistry will take time, but the Roos are on the right track. 

“I think we had some really good points (in the first JLT game), but I also think we have a lot to improve on.” Goldstein told Noth Media.

“We were pretty much swapping three for three for almost the whole game, without having those normal stay at home guys like Ben Cunnington.

“With the midfield group, you need continuity. So the more games we can play together and test different combinations, the better we’ll be.”

While the new recruits in Dom Tyson and Aaron Hall were allocated valuable midfield minutes, it was the likes of Luke Davies-Uniacke, Jy Simpkin and Trent Dumont that gave North’s on-ball brigade a fresh look.

At the opening bounce, it was Shaun Higgins, Luke Davies-Uniacke and Jy Simpkin feeding off the taps of Goldstein, while at the start of the second quarter, Higgins was alongside Tyson and Hall.

Paul Ahern, Trent Dumont and Tarryn Thomas also spent time on the ball, while Tom Campbell rotated through the ruck.

“We’re getting to that point where it’s a seamless transition for any player coming in,” he said.

“We’ve had three or four months of pre-season training to work together, and the coaches have made sure they’ve mixed up what ruckman has played with what midfielders so that everyone can get that continuity.

“I think we are getting there.”

Fortunately for the Roos, this Saturday’s second JLT match against Port Adelaide will give them another opportunity to developthat connection.

With the likes of Sam Powell-Pepper, Travis Boak, Tom Rockliff, Robbie Gray and Brad Ebert all likely to feature for the Power, Saturday’s will be another good test of North’s progress.

“It’s good to see where we’re at and have a really strong hit-out before Round 1, because at the end of the day, we’re all building to be ready for Round 1,” Goldstein added.

“We found last year we had a really tough game against Richmond in our JLT 2, and that held us in good stead, so we’re hoping for the same this weekend.”