Consecutive preliminary final appearances have been enough to earn North Melbourne coach Brad Scott a two-year contract extension, but the man himself says the club remains "bitterly disappointed" by the way its 2015 season ended.
Scott, who enters his seventh year at the helm in 2016, was due to come out of contract following the impending campaign.
However the Roos have seen enough progress in Scott's side to warrant a new deal, and secured him until the end of 2018.
Scott said he was pleased with the development.
"I'm really excited to re-commit to the football club for another few years and just ecstatic that the club sees fit to reappoint me and they see me as the right person to take this group forward," Scott told North Melbourne's website from Utah, where the Roos are training.
But Scott added North had to strive for better.
"Finishing in two preliminary finals doesn't mean you start any further ahead or any further behind any other team in the competition."
"In 2015 we were bitterly disappointed, we really felt we gave ourselves every opportunity to win the [preliminary final] and we didn't capitalise on it. We would have really looked forward to giving it a red hot crack on grand final day."
Scott's last contract extension came following the 2012 season, in which the club made its first final in four seasons, losing to West Coast in the elimination final.
While the Roos missed the finals in 2013, they rebounded to make the eight the following year. Scott steered North from the elimination final into a preliminary final against Sydney, only for the team to be thrashed. The Roos then repeated the feat this year, progressing from eighth position to again reach the season's penultimate weekend, only to again be defeated by the eventual runners up - the Eagles.
Scott highlighted the importance of stability.
"We've been able to build over the last five years and put a lot of things in place and we're really looking forward to our future. That stability gives all the coaches, all the players and administrators (confidence) that we are heading in the right direction."
The re-signing of Scott means that of the current AFL coaches only Damien Hardwick (Richmond), Nathan Buckley (Collingwood) and Justin Lepppitsch (Brisbane Lions) await contract extensions. Paul Roos' deal at Melbourne also finishes at the end of next year, but he will be succeeded by Simon Goodwin, pursuant to a deal formed last year.
