Luke Davies-Uniacke has long seemed a breakout star for North Melbourne. The young midfielder is beginning to tie all aspects of his game together, and we was amongst the Kangaroos' strongest performers against Hawthorn in Round 1.

He finished with 29 disposals, five clearances and a game-high nine tackles. After showing flashes of his quality across his career so far, this was amongst the most consistent four-quarter individual performances he's registered in his time wearing royal blue and white.

He says a change of tact over pre-season has set him up well for 2022.

"This pre-season I've taken a bit more of a step to following Jy (Simpkin). He's taken his game in the last two years to another level," Davies-Uniacke told RSN.

"I'm always talking to 'Cunners' (Ben Cunnington) about that, and my previous possession [numbers] have always been around that 20 mark.

"When I get the ball I feel like I do a lot with it, but we just want to get me more opportunities to find it and bring it up to that 25-30 mark and beyond."

Confidence is a huge part of any elite athlete's armoury on game day. When you're playing well you feel like the world is at your feet.

Davies-Uniacke is one of a number of midfielders who have had to cover the absence of Cunnington, and he says he's gaining confidence as he becomes settled in his role.

"I've got more of a licence to win the footy, go for the footy and play how I used to in local and school footy," he said.

"That's what I'm starting to bring now, just more confidence in the game and looking to get my teammates involved.

"Close after the bye last year was the passing of my dad, and that's given me a lot of motivation to do him proud and see where I can take my footy."