NORTH MELBOURNE recruiting manager Bryce Lewis was under no illusions about which area of the squad to address when looking at the 2008 crop of prospective draftees.

With one of the smallest midfield groups in the competition, the Roos' lack of depth was starting to show through the retirement of Jess Sinclair and Shannon Grant and having Adam Simpson and Brent Harvey approach the twilight of their careers.

The club said in the lead-up to Saturday's NAB AFL Draft that it hoped to top up its experienced brigade with players who could serve well it in the future.

And three of North’s five draft selections – Jack Ziebell, Liam Anthony and Warren Benjamin – fit that bill.

"When Cameron Joyce (talent manager) came to the club he put forward an analysis of our list and the midfield was an area we needed to address," Lewis said.

"Coming in, our philosophy was best player with those needs in mind. We’re pretty happy with how our draft panned out."

North managed one of the early steals of the draft when Murray Bushranger Jack Ziebell, a standout for Vic Country in this year's NAB AFL Under-18 Championships, fell to them at pick No. 9.

Ziebell had been strongly linked to Essendon at No. 5 and the Brisbane Lions at No. 7, but Fremantle’s choice of Stephen Hill at No. 3 may have pushed him back.

Lewis said he was always keen on Ziebell but had to play the waiting game to see if he was still available by the time North Melbourne's first selection came around.

"All the way through we were in a position where we weren’t sure what was going to come through to us so we had to make sure we had the players ranked in order and go from there," Lewis said.

Ziebell was joined minutes later by Bushrangers teammate Samuel Wright, a medium-sized forward who can also play in the back line and midfield.

Lewis said Wright’s versatility was part of his appeal.

"He had an impact at the start of the year as a lead-up forward. In the second half of the year his coach put him back as part of his football education and he really came on in that role as a running, rebounding defender," he said.

"He’s got a bit of class and he’s pretty good with his hands and kicks with both feet. We’ll hope that in time he’ll develop into a wingman playing up the ground."

Twenty-one-year-old Anthony joins North after a couple of seasons with East Fremantle in the WAFL while Nathan O’Keefe and the zippy Benjamin are expected to be long-term prospects.