After closing out the home and away season with a thrilling draw against Richmond, the North Melbourne Tasmanian Kangaroos will head down the highway to take on the surging Cats in finals football.

Having walked away from Arden Street Oval unable to clinch the double chance, the Roos will face elimination when they arrive at GMHBA Stadium on Saturday night.

Make sure you're ready to go with this week's gameday guide.

Set your matchday reminders

Saturday, November 5
Geelong v North Melbourne at GMHBA Stadium, 7.10pm AEDT

A relatively slow start in Round 10 saw Darren Crocker's side on the back foot against an in-form Richmond outfit, and although Sophie Abbatangelo rose Shinboner spirits with a goal early in the third quarter, North couldn’t build much from it.

As has been the case throughout several games this season, the Roos failed to capitalise on their inside-50 dominance, kicking three goals and nine behinds for the afternoon.

While Jas Garner was copping a hard tag, young midfielder Mia King lifted her output and had one of her best games for the season, finishing with 20 disposals, six tackles and six clearances.

The experienced duo of Jenna Bruton and Ash Riddell combined for 38 disposals and two goals, while Emma King performed admirably with 26 hitouts and 11 touches in Kim Rennie's absence.

Geelong had no trouble closing out its home and away campaign with a win, defeating the Swans by 75 points with an avalanche of majors on their home deck.

Chloe Scheer kicked four goals for the Cats and teammate Amy McDonald collected 34 disposals and 11 clearances.

North Melbourne managed to claim a 12-point victory over Geelong in Round 4 earlier this season and are yet to fall to the Cats since entering the competition.

Will the Roos triumph in enemy territory and progress to a semi-final?

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Bring on the first week of Season 7 finals!

It's truly do-or-die time for the North Melbourne Tasmanian Kangaroos who travel to Geelong to square off with the Cats in an elimination final on Saturday night.

The Roos set out to clinch to a double chance in Round 10, but a draw with Richmond saw them slip to eighth position on the eve of finals.

After falling behind in the first quarter, North began to gradually lift its pressure but was unable to put the Tigers to the sword as inaccuracy in front of goal once again haunted Darren Crocker's side.

Despite finishing ahead in the inside-50 count (35-22), the Roos could only muster three goals and nine behinds in a display that was only a week removed from a clinical attacking performance against Collingwood.

Geelong, on the other hand, dropped the second highest AFLW score in history as it thumped the Swans at GMHBA Stadium 102-27 while going at 75.9 per cent in terms of disposal efficiency.

For the Kangaroos' biggest game of the year so far, here are three narratives to take note of as they look to lock in a semi-final spot.

Last time out

North Melbourne adapted promptly and efficiently to the slippery, wet-weather conditions back when the two sides met in Round 4, to take down the Cats by two goals.

Playing direct football and gaining ground wherever possible, the Roos went into half-time with a 3.4 (22) to 0.2 (2) lead and managed to hold Geelong goalless until Laura Gardiner sent one through the big sticks 11 minutes into the third term.

Jenna Bruton starred in the blue and white stripes, gathering 24 disposals and five tackles, while teammate Ash Riddell found the footy 26 times.

In the hoops, Amy McDonald and Georgie Prespakis combined for 58 disposals and 15 clearances, but their stoppage supremacy wasn't enough to get the Cats over the line in Tasmania.

The victory extended North's unbeaten streak to four wins against Geelong, but should a fifth arise on Saturday night it will likely become the pick of the bunch.

Fit for the throne

It can be difficult to shine in a midfield that contains Jas Garner, Ash Riddell, Bruton and Emma King, but 21-year-old Mia King has been able to do just that.

A reliable inside midfielder, King has recently flicked a switch and taken her game to another level.

Round 9 against the Pies saw her enjoy one of her best outings for the year as she collected a season-high 21 disposals as well as five tackles and four marks.

She followed it up with arguably a better performance against Richmond a week later, garnering 20 touches, six clearances and six tackles all from just 57 per cent game time.

While she remains a key member of North Melbourne's future in the AFLW, what she is providing in the present both on defence and now more so with ball in hand is extremely valuable to a side looking to make an impact this November.

Which sharpshooter will reign supreme?

North Melbourne's Tahlia Randall and Geelong's Chloe Scheer are two forwards that possess the X-factor necessary to break a game open.

Since moving from defence to attack, Randall has become a notable contested marking machine.

The ever-present threat uses her strength to perfection in marking situations each week and has been able to boot 10 goals for the season off the back of a league-topping 19 contested marks.

Not only does Randall pose as a dangerous forward close to goal, but her ability to come up high and be a reliable target for rebounding defenders often flies under the radar.

Her Geelong sharpshooting counterpart will enter Saturday's elimination final after slotting four majors against Sydney to take her season total to 13.

The opportunistic small forward had a slow start around goals during the opening month of Season 7 but has managed to kick at least one goal a game for the past six week.

Despite not being overly tall, Scheer has taken 17 contested marks for the season and a league-high 21 marks inside 50 with Randall one spot behind (20).

Expect these two players to feature heavily throughout Saturday night as both look to play a key role in propelling their respective sides to a semi-final.

The North Melbourne Tasmanian Kangaroos have advanced to the semi-finals after defeating Geelong by two points in a thriller at GMHBA Stadium on Saturday night.

Shelley Scott – for so much of this season the hero in Geelong's forward line – blew a tough set shot with just 90 seconds left, and then again played on 30 seconds later, her kick just rushed over the line to wrap up the 2.4 (16) to 1.8 (14) result.

It was a scrappy, high-pressure game, with neither side allowing the other much space around the contest.

The Cats had 12-5 inside 50s in the first quarter, but the Roos took better advantage of their limited entries, and it was a buffer that held into half-time.

Geelong owned most of the second and third terms, but struggled to put any scoreboard pressure on, thanks in part to some desperate Kangaroos defending from the likes of Brooke Brown and Jas Ferguson.

Conversely, the Roos found the going tough when attempting to exit their defensive half, with Georgie Rankin and Annabel Johnson patrolling across the field, and the game was mainly a dour, ping-pong struggle played at the Cats' end.

CATS v KANGAROOS Full match coverage and stats

Two top-tier midfields went head-to-head, with North Melbourne just edging Geelong in the clearance count despite a clear dominance in the ruck.

Jasmine Garner was once again North Melbourne's best with 23 disposals, six clearances and eight tackles, and was well supported by Mia King and Jenna Bruton.

Amy McDonald nearly broke the game open in the final minutes with her run and dash, and was a fierce fighter throughout, as were Nina Morrison and Mikayla Bowen on the wings.

A welcome return
North Melbourne skipper Emma Kearney missed last week with knee soreness, following a collision with powerful teammate Vikki Wall, but she made a huge impact after a week off. Playing with heavy strapping on her right knee, Kearney provided a cool head off half-back, directing the tempo of play. There was no more important moment than her low diving mark in the final 20 seconds, copping a late hit and taking a 50m penalty to ice the clock.

Finals hits differently
The two teams have developed reputations for free-flowing, high-scoring footy, but the opposite was on show at GMHBA Stadium. Controlled disposal chains were few and far between, as pressure from both teams resulted in bombs down the line and hack kicks out of packs. In the end, it was North Melbourne which held its nerve the longest.

Up next
It's season over for Geelong, while North Melbourne will face Richmond on the Tigers' home deck in a semi-final.

GEELONG                            1.3     1.4     1.5    1.8  (14)
NORTH MELBOURNE         2.1     2.2     2.3    2.4  (16)

GOALS
Geelong: Moloney
North Melbourne: Abbatangelo, O'Loughlin

BEST
Geelong: A. McDonald, Morrison, Rankin, Bowen, Emonson
North Melbourne: Garner, M. King, Bruton, Smith, Brown 

INJURIES
Geelong: Nil
North Melbourne: Nil

Reports: Nil

Crowd: 4,338 at GMHBA Stadium