When the opportunity arose to put his name forward for the North Melbourne coaching position, David Noble and his family had a tough decision to make, knowing the impact it would have on their family life.

But fortunately for North, the decision was a unanimous one.

“We made the decision as a family,” Noble told the Herald Sun.

“We checked with the kids and spoke to them and got an understanding of what it was all going to look like. Sarah and I spent a bit of time debating how it would work and then we spoke to my dad before making the decision.”

His wife, Sarah, won’t be joining him in Melbourne in the immediate future, staying on the family’s property at Tamborine, about 50km from Brisbane, with his father John.

He was full of praise for his wife for her support in a transition period, made even more difficult by the pandemic.

“Sarah has been enormously supportive of me; she has been a rock to our family,” Noble said of his wife.

“When this opportunity popped up, she was very bullish that I should do it. She will stay up there on the property initially because my dad is on the property.

“Dad was a bit of legend (as a footballer) in Tassie. He played in the old carnivals in the ’60s and won a Lefroy Medal as the best player in the carnival.

“We lost (his) mum (Pat) two years ago in December.”

He will have family support in the Melbourne however with sons, Collingwood defender John, and Mark, who had been set to play for Werribee before the pandemic, close by.

Since joining the club in November, Noble has made his own mark in the coaching box, with the additions of his one-time Fitzroy teammate John Blakey, Heath Younie, Jordan Russell and Anthony Rocca, who will join head of development Gavin Brown, Leigh Adams and Brent Harvey, who remain from last season.

Consultant Paul Roos, who first contacted Noble about the position, will also sit in the coaches box on game day.

For Noble, matching club values to the coach was a critical part of his decision.

“I have always felt that clubs and coaches need to fit and I just felt for the right reasons this club fitted me,” he said.

“I thought of (North Melbourne) as genuine, honest, loyal, trustworthy ... it felt like there was a good synergy.

“(The coaching panel) asked: ‘What is it about us (that excites you)?’. I said: ‘I love the authenticity, I love the history, I love the understatedness, I can’t wait to roll our sleeves up and get the job done.’

He also shared past connection to the club, in the form of premiership player Darryl Sutton.

“I played under Darryl (at North Hobart in 1985); he actually gave me my debut. He was full forward and I was forward pocket and I was pretty much standing in the forward pocket. That was my role.

“I trained through the pre-season and I was still at school doing my matric(ulation). He spoke to my dad and said ‘yeah he is ready’.

“So the journey continues, and I walk in here (at Arden St) and I see his picture in the foyer (as part of the 1977 premiership side).

“It means a lot and it shows just what this football club means to a lot of people.”

Noble is confident about what the future holds for North Melbourne and its fans.

“For our fans, I think they need to be aware we are chasing success, but what that looks like this year, we are not sure,” he said.

“I am a hard one on process. Let’s get the process right first.

“We want our fans to see that we are reliable, and that we are good for what we say we will do. We want the fans to be a part of the journey going forward.”

And while he’s renowned as one of the hardest workers in the industry, he has one rule that he is making sure his coaches and players adhere to; a day off is a day off.

“I’m big on that ...a day off is a day off,” he said.

“That balance and wellbeing in your life is very important.

“You need some down time. We are very strong on that.”

Noble’s interests outside of football include playing tennis, bike riding, and vintage cars, although his 1965 Mustang remains in Queensland.