The Kangaroos jet off to Western Australia this weekend with hopes of doing the double over West Coast at Optus Stadium on Sunday.

A strong three quarters last weekend had North Melbourne well within reach of a third win for 2023, but St Kilda surged home with five final-term goals to claim the four points.

The Eagles were on the backfoot immediately in their own battle against the Blues, conceding nine majors in the opening quarter before going down by 71 points.

The opposition

It's been a season to forget for the Eagles, who find themselves anchored to 18th spot on the ladder with just one victory after 19 games.

Last weekend's defeat to Carlton was their 16th consecutive loss in 2023 and their 10th by 50+ points during that stretch.

A key contributing factor to the Eagles' struggles has been their extensive injury list, which was made longer over the weekend with hamstring injuries to veteran Luke Shuey and rising star Reuben Ginbey.

One encouraging aspect has been the club's emerging youngsters. Elijah Hewett, Campbell Chesser, Brady Hough and Noah Long have all impressed in glimpses throughout a trying campaign.

Running hot

Although last Sunday wasn't to be for the Kangas, Luke Davies-Uniacke lost no admirers in his return to elite form.

The star midfielder was best afield despite the five-point defeat to St Kilda in Round 19, receiving 10 AFLCA Champion Player of the Year Award votes for the third time this season.

Using his quick feet at stoppages and elusiveness in tricky situations, Davies-Uniacke finished with 33 disposals (23 contested possessions), 12 clearances, 668 metres gained, nine inside 50s and eight intercept possessions.

With disposal counts of 28, 26, and 33 over the past three weeks, the smooth-moving onballer is recapturing the form he displayed to kick off 2023.

What the coaches have said

Interim North Melbourne coach Brett Ratten on Wednesday: "I’ve had some real enjoyment. It’s been a shame we’ve been close without the victory. If we play like we did last week (against St Kilda), we’re going to give ourselves a chance. If we play like the Hawthorn (game), we're not going to give ourselves any chance."

West Coast coach Adam Simpson on post-game v Carlton: "We're rebuilding a list, so finding opportunities for our younger players, growing our list with experience, getting the best out of our senior players … we're working through a new era. I don’t know how many under 20s we had today, probably seven, and I suspect three or four probably aren’t quite ready (for AFL)."

Last time we met

North Melbourne 12.15 (87) def West Coast 12.10 (82), Round 1, 2023 at Marvel Stadium 

The Roos held on for a dramatic five-point win when they hosted the Eagles back in March this season, with Alastair Clarkson's reign getting off to the perfect start.

Spearhead Nick Larkey booted six goals in front of the home crowd while Davies-Uniacke (32 disposals, 11 clearances) set the tone around the ground.

Griffin Logue, Liam Shiels and Harry Sheezel all impressed in their first games as Roos, with Sheezel grabbing the majority of the headlines after collecting 34 touches off half-back on debut.

Shuey was West Coast's best with 27 possessions, eight tackles and a goal, while key defender Jeremy McGovern stood tall with a game-high 12 intercept possessions.