A standard end of season trip home to Darwin in 2013, goose-hunting and wading through water, proved to be a life-changing experience for Jed Anderson.

After his return, Anderson had been ill – two trips to the hospital with a fever and a headache resulting in a quick return home.

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However the third time was much more serious, as Anderson told The Age’s Emma Quayle.

“I could only breathe when I was leaning over and my chest felt all blocked up,” he said.

"They did a chest X-ray when I went back, and saw the pneumonia, and that's all I can remember.”

“It was six or seven days later that they woke me up, and it was pretty scary.”

While he thought it was the next morning when he woke up and he'd simply been asleep, the reality was far more serious.

The infection he had been dealing with – leptospirosis – had attacked his organs, and his kidneys had come in for severe punishment.

Although Anderson pulled through, he exited the hospital 12kgs lighter and all of a sudden wondering how he’d get back to the AFL.

In the following two years the youngster suffered a major shoulder injury and was wondering if he’d be able to claim a spot in the all-conquering Hawthorn juggernaut.

So by the end of 2015, when he started his search for a new club, North Melbourne immediately created a quality impression.

"It felt like they wanted me the most," Anderson told Quayle.

“They made me feel like if I came here, I might be able to give them something too."

It was still a tough decision to leave his first AFL club and a choice he spent time mulling over.

"It was a hard decision to leave, so I had a lot of things in the back of my mind saying, 'is this the right move, can I do this, how different is it going to be, am I giving the coaches and the players what they want?'

“I felt some expectation walking through the door here, coming in as someone they want to play a part in the team.”

After making the move to Arden St it was a whirlwind summer for Anderson. His very first day was a trip to Utah for a two-week training camp, followed by the long, hot summer months essentially starting from scratch in a new environment.

But as soon as the practice matches started, Anderson was able to relax.

“They gave up their first-round draft pick for me to come over, so there was that pressure there as well, but as soon as you play for the first time that starts to wash away.

"After that first match against the boys I sort of felt settled and thought, 'I can do this, I know what I have to do’.

“I know I made the right decision, and those little questions are gone now, I've pushed them all away.

“There's still pressure, because the real games are coming, but I want to play, so I sort of came over here for that pressure. It's the right club for me to be at and it's up to me to keep that going. It feels comfortable, and I want to make them happy they got me now."