North Melbourne's squad took on each other at Arden Street Oval on Friday in the club's annual official intraclub.

Matt Whitlock led the goalscorers with five, while Finn O'Sullivan took a screamer and first-year draftee Lachy Dovaston kicked three goals in 15 minutes. Here are five things we learned from the match.

1. The big men are getting bigger

In 200cm Wil Dawson and 197cm Matt Whitlock, the Kangaroos have two imposing key position players in the making. While both players are yet to turn 21, they are gradually filling out their frames, providing Roos fans with more glimpses of what lies in store.

Whitlock, who played exclusively as a defender in his first season as a Kangaroo, excelled in a new role up forward on Friday, kicking a game-high five goals.

"He's got elite-level ability for a man of his size," national recruiting and retention manager Will Thursfield said of Whitlock on the live stream broadcast. "When the ball comes down there quick, he's very hard to stop."

Dawson, who matched up on Whitlock in the second half, impressed fellow defender Aidan Corr. "He's going to be a monster," Corr said of Dawson. "Those young guys are hunting it in the gym and you hear it at training. It's body on body during the drills. Men hitting men. And that makes a huge difference when it comes to gameday."

2. Expect 'FOS' to spend more time on the ball

Heading into only his second season, Finn O'Sullivan is already nearly unrecognisable from the stringbean recruit who became a Roo with pick No.2 in the 2024 AFL draft.

O'Sullivan, who turned heads as a winger in his debut season, has bulked up in a big way over the off-season. In Friday's intraclub he spent plenty of time on the ball, attending centre bounces and using his newfound muscle to win contested footy.

Showing he has also lost none of his wizardry, he delivered the intraclub's standout highlight, soaring over teammates to mark on the left wing, before popping up a minute later on the right wing to intercept and again drive his side into attack.

3. Good luck keeping Dovaston out of the game

First-round draft selection Lachy Dovaston arrived at Arden St in November with a reputation for making a nuisance of himself in attack. 

He worked to get involved from the opening bounce on Friday evening, surging to present himself as a forward option and harassing defenders when he was without the ball. 

A point was his only reward in the opening half, but that changed after half time. In a 15-minute purple patch he put his stamp on the game by kicking three goals. His first came after an athletic assist by Cooper Trembath, his second when he popped up in space to receive a Luke Davies-Uniacke handball, his third after a clean mark in the left forward pocket.

While it's still very early in the 18-year-old's career, if he continues to approach his footy with this type of hunger, he won't be kept out of many games for long. 

4. Young Kangas stake their claims

Cooper Trembath was among a handful of young Roos to use the intraclub to press their claims for a berth in North Melbourne's season opener against Port Adelaide.

A mid-season rookie draft recruit who played last season's three closing games as a forward, Trembath spent time in the ruck for the blue team, winning his own ball several times and executing a leaping intercept to set up a Dovaston goal.

Taylor Goad, rucking in the Origin-bound Tristan Xerri's absence, showed his mobility around the ground, and capped his game with a goal. Meanwhile, second-year player Luke Urquhart impressed with his rebound and kicked the game's best goal, streaming forward and nailing a kick on the run from the 50m arc.

5. There's dynamism in the Roos' attack

Watching defenders struggle to contain Paul Curtis early in Friday's game, it was incredible to recall that the forward faced a threatening medical episode only weeks ago, undergoing emergency surgery late last year for pneumonia suffered overseas.

While Curtis can be expected to still be rebuilding his fitness, he was the blue team's most dynamic forward in the opening half, showing he is close to being back to his best. Appearing slightly leaner, he snapped a crisp goal to finish a move created by Bailey Scott and Tom Powell, and added two more later in the game.

With senior stars Nick Larkey, Cam Zurhaar and Jack Darling supported by Curtis and a fleet of small forwards, there are many avenues to goal for the Roos, and plenty to be excited about as they prepare for their first competitive pre-season test in next Friday's match sim against Melbourne at Casey Fields.