New recruit Aiden Bonar says his close relationship with Luke Davies-Uniacke, and a meeting with coach Rhyce Shaw swayed his decision to join North Melbourne.  

“I knew it was a good club to come to because I’d been speaking to Lukey (Davies-Uniacke),” Bonar told Fox Footy. 

“It didn’t happen until the last day that I actually met North – and by then I was packing my bags to go back to Sydney. I met with ‘Shawry’ in a café and he thought I could contribute to what they’re doing here.”

Best mates dating back to their high school days, Davies-Uniacke and Bonar had kept in constant contact over the trade period.  

“I was nervous and anxious for him (Bonar) because it’s his future,” Davies-Uniacke said. 

“I was just behind him all the way no matter what decision he made. It was totally up to him. 

“It has been so good having him here. When I first got drafted I didn’t know any of the draftees so it was a whole different experience coming here. You become mates with everyone, but to add him has been so good.

“He has fitted in really well from the moment he arrived.” 

The pair have been inseparable since Bonar’s first day, now living together in Elwood. 

And after a tough 2019 at the Giants, Bonar is up for the challenge at his new club.

“2019 was really hard, to be honest,” he said. 

“I was playing midfield at the start of the year and then they tried to push me into a forward role pretty early in the year to get a game and then a defending forward. Then I was possibly going to become a defender at the end of it. I was putting my hand up for everything, but it was really hard.

“It was hard going to training when they were doing so well. You’ve got to stay upbeat because your mates are playing finals and you’ve got to train as well as you can to make them better. And that’s just what I tried to do with a smile on my face.”