WITH an injury list as long as his arm, it seemed Jed Anderson was destined to become one of those players who never realised his potential.

A problematic shoulder, hamstring issues, broken thumb — even pneumonia, Anderson only managed 25 games in his first six AFL seasons.

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Finals Week 1

But the gifted half-forward is injury-free in 2018. And most importantly, he’s playing his best footy to date, adding a certain hardness to his repertoire.

The 24-year-old is averaging career-high disposals (14.8) and tackles (5.8) and has also kicked three goals.

And in the eyes of skipper Jack Ziebell, he’s becoming “a really important member” of North Melbourne’s side.

“I think Jed has always been a very capable player,” Ziebell told foxfooty.com.au.

“He’s probably had a bit of unfair treatment from the external football world. But we all truly believe strongly in Jed and what he’s capable of.

“He has been really unlucky with injuries, don’t get me wrong about that.

“The effort that he puts in, the dedication and commitment that he’s showing, it’s awesome to see him getting reward for effort.

“Hopefully he can continue that because he’s becoming a really important member of our side.”

Jed Anderson has played all five matches this season. Photo: Michael Klein Source: News Corp Australia

Anderson is one of a wave of young Roos making their mark this season.

While most pundits predicted Brad Scott’s side to finish in the bottom four, the club has won three of its first five games to be sitting fourth on the ladder ahead of Round 6.

The Kangaroos’ latest scalp — defeating Hawthorn by 28 points at Etihad Stadium — has caused an external reassessment of the club.

They’re renovating on the run, with a host of inexperienced players stepping up to not just fill roles, but own them.

Ryan Clarke’s shift to halfback has been a major success, as has Majak Daw’s.

And Ziebell’s move to the forward line has allowed Ben Brown and Jarrad Waite to thrive.

“We’ve had a few young guys come in, like Jed Anderson, who has been really good in the midfield,” Ziebell said.

“Guys like Jy Simpkin, Luke Davies-Uniacke and Trent Dumont all standing up allows myself or (Ben Cunnington) or Shaun Higgins to roll forward a bit more.

“We probably haven’t had that flexibility in the past couple of years. It’s good to be able to build that.

“Hopefully we can get a few more players through there as well and use that to our strength a bit more.”

Ziebell has kicked eight goals so far this season, scoring in every match besides the club’s Round 2 win over St Kilda on Good Friday.

“I played a lot of junior footy as a forward so it does come quite naturally,” Ziebell said.

“To have Jarrad Waite, Ben Brown, Kane Turner, Shaun Atley and a couple of smalls, the forward line mix we have at the moment is really working.

“Everyone is jelling really well, we all know what our roles are.”