North Melbourne have been coy publicly, but privately hope Sunday's AFL clash with Hawthorn in Launceston will herald the start of a brilliant career for young midfielder Ben Cunnington.

The No.5 draft pick has been the subject of big raps inside the club since he started pre-season training, but a foot injury interrupted his preparation.

Several strong performances in the reserves elevated him into contention for a debut over the past three weeks and the midfielder's day finally comes against the Hawks at Aurora Stadium.

The Kangaroos hope Cunnington, a hard-at-it inside midfielder recruited from the Geelong Falcons, can have just as big an impact as the youngsters they have thrown into the engine room over the past two seasons.

Liam Anthony, Jack Ziebell and this year's second-round pick Ryan Bastinac have all stepped up with aplomb into a midfield being built with an eye firmly on the future.

Coach Brad Scott is cautiously optimistic Cunnington can prove just as capable, though he is mindful of not putting too much pressure on one of the top handful of players selected in last year's draft.

"He's performed very well at VFL level, but we do have great competition for spots ... when he's ready to play, he will certainly come in and have an impact," Scott said this week.

"He is renowned for his hardness and aggression and leadership qualities.

"He's a very classy player, he's very clean and he's got good skills."

Cunnington is one of two changes to North's line-up, with defender Levi Greenwood also included.

Sam Wright and Leigh Harding have been dropped.

The Hawks headed to their home away-from-home at Launceston without skipper Sam Mitchell, who will miss the match with hamstring tightness.

But tough midfielder Brad Sewell returns from injury, while forward spearhead Lance Franklin and young defender Liam Shiels are back after suspension.

Hawthorn are attempting to rebound from their savaging by Collingwood last weekend, while North are attempting to salvage just their second win of the year.

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