By the end of the season, however, Jones was offered up for trade prior to the 2008 AFL Draft; however no suitable trade was able to be made and Jones remained at North Melbourne. However, he only played one game in the first half of the 2009 season, with a rift with coach Dean Laidley blamed for his demotion to the reserves team, North Ballarat. After Laidley resigned and Darren Crocker took over as the caretaker coach, Jones played in nine of the remaining eleven matches.