It can’t be disputed that Ben McKay is in the midst of a breakout year, with the 23-year-old thriving in the North Melbourne defence early in the 2021 season.

All the more impressive is that McKay has had to not only find his feet, but become the main key defender due to the continued absences of Robbie Tarrant and Aidan Corr.

The praise coming the number 23's way is not just coming from inside the walls of Arden Street though, with Garry Lyon confessing to be a huge admirer of the way he goes about his business.

“I want to shout out Ben McKay who’s playing full back in a team that’s had some goals kicked against them,” Lyon said on SEN.

“I’ve sort of bemoaned a bit the dying art of defending and having to identify space and dangerous space, and I reckon his last two weeks against Taylor Walker and Tommy Hawkins have been really good.”

McKay is not the only young North defender who is impressing this season, with David Noble reserving special praise for the transformation undergone by trade acquisition Atu Bosenavulagi.

Bosenavulagi made his North Melbourne debut against Geelong on Sunday, and Noble says the continued development of the young defender has everyone at the club excited about his future.

“The other one I’d like to shout out too is Atu. We traded for him in pre-season as a small forward and he went back and played as a small defender on the weekend,” Noble told SEN.

“I think Gavin Brown (Head of Development) has done an unbelievable job with him to teach him some of that craft.

“They’re great little stories internally that we get really excited about.”