North Melbourne will head to the MCG for this first time this season, as it looks to rebound from its four-loss stretch when it takes on Melbourne.

The Kangaroos have suffered two disappointing results over the past fortnight, and will face a Demons outfit that surged home late in its Anzac Day Eve clash with Richmond to return to the winners list.

With Round 7 approaching, make sure you're prepared with this week's gameday guide.

Set your matchday reminders

Saturday, April 29
Melbourne v North Melbourne at the MCG, 7.25pm AEST 

Under the MCG lights on Saturday night, North Melbourne will be out to cause an upset when it challenges the 4-2 Demons.

So you don't miss the game, or any others this season, make sure to sync the fixture to you calendar.

Ticketing

Tickets for our Round 6 game with Melbourne at the MCG can be purchased here.

While you're at it, grab a seat at our next home fixture for when we to take on the Saints at Marvel Stadium on May 7.

Be a part of history as we target beyond 50k members in 2023

The Kangaroos' journey continues in 2023, and we're looking to surpass last year's club record 50,000 members as Alastair Clarkson's team continues its path towards silverware.

Joining up as a member is a great way to support not only the AFL team, but the entire football club.

Watch on TV or stream on your phone

Saturday's game will be broadcast live on Channel 7, Foxtel, and Kayo Sports.

Stay connected on social media

For behind-the-scenes access and all the best highlights, photos, stats and stories, we’ve got you covered.
 
Follow the @NMFCOfficial accounts on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook to stay up to date with everything happening at the match and don't forget to use #Kangas.
 
Bring on the MCG!

Challenges like this one don’t get much tougher for a developing team.

Under the MCG's bright lights, North Melbourne will front up against a Melbourne outfit that not only boasts multiple All-Australians but a contingent of premiership players as well.

Alastair Clarkson's side will relish their return to Victoria though and will have the opportunity to claim a significant scalp as it looks to put a disappointing month of results behind it.

Cunnington's cobwebs are clearing

He may not be at his contested ball-winning and authoritative best just yet, but Ben Cunnington's response to being subbed off on Good Friday is one to take note of.

With 10 disposals and zero clearances to his name midway through the term against Carlton, Clarkson made the decision to replace Cunnington. A move that has perhaps reignited the two-time Syd Barker Medallist's fire.

The No.10 reacted by gathering 22 touches and four clearances against the Lions, but levelled up last week against the Suns, leading the way with a team-high 27 possessions (16 contested), eight clearances and five inside 50s in Jy Simpkin's absence.

Saturday night, opposite a stacked Melbourne midfield, Cunnington will have the chance to take another step towards recapturing the form North Melbourne fans know he's capable of displaying.

Battling Melbourne's big men

The Demons welcomed captain Max Gawn back into its line-up on Monday night as the side reformed its dangerous and dynamic rucking duo with him and Brodie Grundy.

In their second full game together, the pairing evenly split their time between ruck and forward, as they handily defeated Richmond's young talls Ben Miller and Samson Ryan at centre bounces and around the ground.

This weekend, it will be up to veteran Todd Goldstein and young key forward Charlie Comben to disrupt Melbourne's big man division.

In his 300th game, Goldstein arguably put in his best shift for the season coming away with 33 hitouts, 14 disposals and five clearances, while Comben's effort and intensity when called upon to ruck hasn’t wavered this year.

Sheezel's response

No.3 pick Harry Sheezel has arguably been the most impressive draftee over the season's opening six weeks, but Sunday evening on the Gold Coast saw the damaging Roo closely checked.

Gold Coast half-forward Nick Holman was able to curb the defender's influence at Heritage Bank Stadium, limiting him to 11 possessions after five weeks of gaining 26 touches or more.

Despite the fact he struggled to impact the contest, Clarkson believes it was a valuable lesson the young gun will be able to learn from heading forward.

"We need to learn as a side and he needs to learn as a player just how to deal with attention like that," Clarkson said after North Melbourne's loss to the Suns.

"It was actually a credit to the kid that he got up. He was a bit bashed up after last week's game against Brisbane he had a corkie, sore thumb, got knocked around a little bit and got himself up to play, which is once again just part of his maturity and lessons learned at the top level of AFL footy.

"Even though his preparation was hampered, to get himself up was a credit to him, and then he found another lesson in terms of the attention that he got from Holman.

"(Sheezel) didn't have the influence that we'd like him to have, but it's a great learning lesson for him as he goes through."

Last time we met

The 8.5 (53) to 14.16 (100) scoreline in Melbourne's favour doesn’t necessarily reflect the way the most recent meeting between the Dees and Roos played out.

Round 10 last season saw a dogged North Melbourne team test the then reigning premiers for three quarters at Marvel Stadium, but the Demons flicked a switch late to run out 47-point victors.

Luke Davies-Uniacke (27 disposals, six clearances) and Bailey Scott (27 and 12 marks) were two of the Kangaroos' best, while defender Luke McDonald racked up 31 touches and recorded a game-high 640 metres gained. 

Melbourne has surged past North Melbourne at the MCG, winning 22.7 (139) to 7.7 (49) in a one-sided affair on Saturday night that saw the Roos lose three players over the course of the match.

The Demons kicked five goals in a flurry to open the first quarter, which was a period further soured when key forward Charlie Comben was taken from the field on a stretcher after suffering a serious lower leg injury.

Play was held up for several minutes and significantly, the Seven Network opted against showing a replay of the gruesome incident.

Fellow North forward Callum Coleman-Jones also was forced from the game in the third term after coming off second-best in a marking contest with Demons defender Steven May.

Completing a tough night for the Roos, Tom Powell needed help from trainers as he went off with a leg injury in the last term.

DEMONS v KANGAROOS Full match coverage and stats

The Dees kicked their highest score this year and were on track to their biggest winning margin against the Kangaroos, before Alastair Clarkson's side kicked the last three goals of the match.

Melbourne midfielder Clayton Oliver finished with 37 possessions, while Christian Petracca and Angus Brayshaw, in his 150th game, also stood out for the home side.

The Kangaroos managed to lead the clearance count early despite Melbourne's strong start, but struggled to match their opposition's intensity and slickness post-stoppage and post-centre bounce over four quarters.

With limited opportunities, Zurhaar finished with three goals to his name, while impressive North Melbourne youngster Harry Sheezel and Aaron Hall had 30-possession games.

Sheez, this kid is good
Harry Sheezel exploded at AFL level from round one and was averaging over 31 disposals a game through the first five weeks before coming back to ground against the Suns in round six with just 11 touches. Had the pace got to the young Roo or was it a case of being figured out by the opposition? Don't worry North Melbourne fans, Sheezel was right back amongst it on Saturday night, finishing with 30 disposals and arguably the Kangaroos' best.

MELBOURNE                 8.2    13.3    16.4    22.7 (139)
NORTH MELBOURNE    1.0     2.3      4.6      7.7 (49)
 
GOALS 
Melbourne: Fritsch 4, Pickett 3, Petracca 3, Chandler 3, Grundy 2, Viney, van Rooyen, Sparrow, Rivers, Neal-Bullen, Schache, Bowey
North Melbourne: Zurhaar 3, Larkey 2, Shiels, Cunnington

BEST 
Melbourne: Petracca, Oliver, Fritsch, Chandler, Brayshaw, Viney, Bowey
North Melbourne: Sheezel, Simpkin, Zurhaar, Ziebell, McDonald

INJURIES 
Melbourne: Nil
North Melbourne: Comben (leg), Coleman-Jones (concussion), Tom Powell (ankle)

SUBSTITUTES
Melbourne: James Harmes (replaced Michael Hibberd in the fourth quarter)
North Melbourne: Daniel Howe (replaced Charlie Comben in the first quarter)

Crowd: 29,455 at the MCG