A third-place finish for the North Melbourne Tasmanian Kangaroos in 2019 left much to be desired according to senior coach, Scott Gowans.

“We feel we left a lot out there last year,” he told North Media.

“We have some unfinished business and I think it’s really good footing to go into the 2020 season with.”

Gowans believes the unknown was a huge factor in their performance.

“Last year there was a lot we didn’t know; we wanted to preform but we just didn’t know what would happen,” Gowans said.

Going into North’s second season, many of these questions have been answered.

“We have some really good background now, we know that we can play footy, and it’s just a matter of putting it all together.

“Right now, there’s a lot of nerves and anticipation, I’m really looking forward to getting into training and getting the group back together.

“Getting Tahlia Randall back down from Queensland, and the Tassie girls back up; we’re feeling a lot of excitement,” Gowans said.

Though some of the team is scattered across Australia, there is a large contingent playing together in Melbourne Uni’s VFLW side under Gowans.

“One of the main things that we’ve been focusing on for the AFLW girls playing VFLW is secondary positions.

“We’ve given them each a secondary position that we think they could potentially play in the AFLW and they’ve been learning that in the VFLW season which I think will be really beneficial.

“Last year we didn’t have the opportunity to do this, but this year they will start pre-season with knowledge and experience of their secondary position, which will really add to their versatility, which is a key component to our game plan.”

With Melbourne Uni composed of a mix of athletes from various levels, making sure the team has synergy is critical.

“We took the philosophy that we didn’t want to segregate our AFLW and VFLW girls. Some clubs do this and we decided not to,” Gowans explained.

“I think it’s better for the players' development.

“The VFLW girls learn what it’s like at the high level and how to play, and vice versa – it’s important for the AFLW girls to know how to teach it.”

This philosophy, one that appears to be working as Melbourne Uni plays in the finals this weekend.

“The trick with combining the two sides is making sure that they gel together,” Gowans said.

“It has gone well so far, but the big test will be the final and see how they perform under pressure.”