A fortnight ago the match post was comparing this year’s games against the Bulldogs, and today’s will be much the same with Essendon with a near-exclusive focus on the first half.
For North Melbourne to go to Perth with a clear plan, withstand a barrage, execute down to a tee and earn the four points is an enormous tick in a year which had a lot of small tickets up until this point.
A slightly different structure to today’s edition of the Notebook, with two main observations followed by a string of mini-thoughts...
Today’s Notebook covers Patrick Dangerfield, Melbourne’s continuing forward dilemmas and what to make of West Coast away from home.
Sunday evening marked the first time North had played an opponent twice at the same venue under David Noble, making it another important step in the process of learning about the team.
A two-topic Notebook this week. First it’s all about Brisbane’s forward spacing, and then a dive into what’s changed at Richmond over the last month.
A much deserved win is just reward for the constant improvement we’re seeing from North Melbourne week on week.
Luke McDonald's return to action was interestingly marked by a new role on the wing. David Noble's post-match comments on it revealed some fascinating possibilities.
For how the round looked on paper leading in, it turned out to be quite entertaining in reality. A draw, two more games decided by a kick, Nathan Buckley’s Collingwood farewell and a ripper in Adelaide which kicked things all off.
A largely uneventful afternoon at Hobart, only featuring North Melbourne jumping out to a five-goal lead at three quarter time, getting reeled back in, plenty of notable talking points from siren to siren and it all ending with North’s first draw since Round 16, 2009 ... actually, maybe there's a fair bit to talk about.
