Former club champion and new North Melbourne senior assistant coach, John Blakey, believes the Roos’ group of young players can help build the club towards success.

“We don't put a ceiling on them, that’s for sure,” Blakey said of the North playing list. 

“Obviously we will be a new coaching group. It's very different to what it was last year.

“A new senior coach (David Noble) always brings new ideas. And hopefully I can bring some new ideas as well to add to that.

“So we're building, but we don't put a ceiling on this group.

“I'm very excited with some of the talent that's already in the door, and obviously we're going to a draft where we get some more young talent into the door.”

Blakey brings plenty of experience as both a coach and as a player, having won two premierships with North in the 90s, and having experienced success as an assistant coach at both Brisbane and Sydney.

“I've been fortunate enough to be in some very good programs,” he said. 

“I was on the back of Brisbane's three-peat up there in 2003. In 2004 they played in another grand final and lost that one.

“Since I've been at Sydney it's been a very successful period as well.

“Knowing how to prepare a team, knowing what it takes to get to finals, knowing what it takes to win finals, is the experience that you learn along the way.

“Hopefully I can bring that knowledge and bring what I've learned from some great teachers in Leigh Matthews, in Paul Roos and my long association with John Longmire.

“Hopefully I can bring that experience and wealth of knowledge here and help build our next success.”

Blakey will reunite with David Noble at North Melbourne, having played together at Fitzroy in the 1990s.

“David was at Fitzroy with myself and so we've known one another since back then, obviously as teammates,” he said. 

“Our paths have certainly taken us on two different journeys, but I've admired him from far from, some of the success that he helped bring to Adelaide and obviously you can see the success at Brisbane now the way that they have built. So I've certainly followed his journey along the way.

“It wasn't something that I expected when I first came here that I'd be working with him, and it's fantastic that we reunite now and hopefully, have a really strong and good working relationship.”

Having retired in 2002, Blakey said he was excited when he returned to a much-changed Arden Street, 18 years later.

“It certainly has changed a fair bit from the whole grandstand we used to be in, and the portables in the car park, so to walk into this facility, which is absolutely first-class, it was a really great feeling to experience that.”