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Why Spargo made the switch to the Roos
Jack Elliott • October 7th, 2025 2:57 pm
After eight years and a premiership at Melbourne, Charlie Spargo has made the switch to North Melbourne.
It was a heart-driven move for the small forward, as he joins the club that he grew up supporting and where his dad played 81 games between 1985 and 1992.
“It’s always nice to, sort of, rekindle that element,” Spargo told Trade Radio.
“Going down to Melbourne with my brother and my dad to watch games, I was always a big North fan growing up.”
But the idea of a fresh start was also a drawcard for his move to Arden Street, with injury hampering his football opportunities in the last two seasons.
“Footy-wise and just needing a fresh start was probably the main reason that I did end up making the move and North was a really good opportunity for me to do that.
“To be quite honest though, given my last two years with injury, missing the whole of 2024 and missing a decent portion of this year and struggling for continuity with my footy, the contract situation was stressing me out a little bit.”
Surgery for an Achilles injury restricted Spargo to only one game in 2024, before a shoulder injury limited the premiership forward to just 10 games this season.
“Given a really difficult last couple of years with not playing a lot of footy and sort of, stagnating as a player a little bit, I felt the best thing for me going forward as an individual was just to press start in a new environment and some new challenges,” he said.
Persistence eventually paid off for the Roos who had previously shown interest in Spargo, but now was the right time according to the livewire.
“There were some other teams interested, but nothing that got quite down the line like it did at North. In 2023, North put the feelers out a little bit via a trade," Spargo said.
“Then towards the end of the year when I’d come back from my last injury, I wasn’t playing AFL, and we’d been in constant talks with North throughout the year.
“Then had some really good open discussions with my manager Tim Lamb and Alan Richardson at Melbourne and then I spoke to Brady (Rawlings) and some people at North Melbourne and then sort of came to a decision that it’s, for both parties, it was the best thing for me just to move on.”
Going under the radar for most of his career, his pressure has been the trademark of his forward craft, and was especially invaluable in a career-best year in 2021 as the Dees broke their premiership drought.
And it’s this version that both Spargo and the Roos will hope to see in 2026 and beyond as he expects to enjoy increased freedom inside the Roos’ forward line.
“I just wanted to play a role that would provide me with a bit more freedom to play footy because I think that’s where I am at my best is when I’m playing on instinct and not thinking about whether I need to hold a lane here or do something like that," Spargo said.
“(My role) most likely will be forward, but Alastair (Clarkson) sort of said that there could be a number of different roles that you play, but the focus for me will just be getting back to playing footy and doing what I do best.”
Now 25 years of age, Spargo will look to lead the Roos’ small forward brigade, with the likes of Paul Curtis, Cooper Harvey and Jacob Konstanty, all aged 22 or younger.
“They’ve got a lot of young talent and that’s quite clear," he said.
“They’ve shown a lot of faith, and they’ve backed it up with some contract security that shows that they believe in me and that I can come in and perform a role and be a leader within the club.”
Spargo played 108 games since being drafted to Melbourne with pick 29 in the 2017 draft.
