Damien Hardwick, John Longmire and Darren Crocker were already on that list when Scott met with chief of football Donald McDonald and list and strategy manager Cameron Joyce at McDonald's home on August 5.
Following Nathan Buckley's decision to join Collingwood and McDonald's presentation to North's board on July 29, a sub-committee – which also included directors Ron Joseph and Trevor O'Hoy and chief executive Eugene Arocca – agreed that Hardwick, Longmire and Crocker should progress to the interview stage.
Joseph contacted a number of current and former coaches with AFL experience, while McDonald was given licence to target other assistant coaches with some guidance from the AFL Coaches Association.
The balance of roughly 20 assistants approached by McDonald said they weren't ready to be considered for a senior job.
"When he (Buckley) declined us, it didn't change our opinion on the qualities our next coach had to have," McDonald told kangaroos.com.au.
"My number one focus has always been about what's going to be best for our playing group right now, taking into consideration we've got a pretty young list and we always thought we were 40 to 60 games away from being a genuine bona fide finals aspirant and finals performer."
North's process was not as public as Richmond, which continues its interviews, but McDonald reiterated how thorough the club was in reaching its appointment of Scott.
Scott was the only addition to the shortlist, which narrowed to three contenders when Longmire withdrew to remain at the Sydney Swans.
McDonald said Crocker and Hardwick's presentations last week were very impressive, but the sub-committee agreed 33-year-old Scott was the best fit.
"The timing's just right for him," McDonald said. "He's got what we want and I think we're a great fit for him, as he said on Monday.
"He knows he's not going to come out and be Leigh Matthews straight up. He's smart enough to understand he needs to learn on the job, but he's also strong enough to be able to put his imprint on the group."
McDonald said North had not felt pressured to make a decision before the Tigers, even when media speculated that Hardwick was the leading contender for both clubs.
"We knew the Richmond one was going on, but at the end of the day that's Richmond's process," he said.
"They know what's best for them and we knew what was best for us.
"If those three boys (Scott, Hardwick and Crocker) had to go through another interview process, or if we felt that they weren't right for us, we'd have to go back to square one again.
"We were very, very passionate and focused about getting the sort of bloke who we wanted with the right sort of credentials."
