There is guaranteed to be at least one change to North Melbourne’s line-up this week, with Ed Vickers-Willis ruled out with a knee injury.

Coming off the bye, the Roos are set to take on St Kilda for the first time since Brent Harvey broke the all-time VFL/AFL games record.

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Defenders

North’s defensive setup could swing on whether the team brings in a tall or a small to replace Vickers-Willis.

If it’s the former, Sam Durdin and Daniel Nielson are in the running after putting together promising runs of form at VFL level before the bye.

If Nielson is selected, it will be his debut and he’ll become the ninth new Shinboner of the season.

Meanwhile, Mitch Hibberd is another putting his hand up for an AFL promotion. The 20-year old hasn’t played for the Roos since the season-opener, but has consistently been winning plenty of the ball off half-back for Werribee in recent weeks.

Midfielders

The continued absence of Ben Jacobs means he won’t be available at any level this week, but there are a number of midfielders still available for North to call upon.

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At the experienced end of the scale, there is the former captain Andrew Swallow, coming off a 36-disposal, nine-tackle effort in the VFL a fortnight ago.

From the youngsters, Declan Mountford and Josh Williams are both close to a game. The latter was the AFL game day emergency against Richmond, while Mountford has reliably done everything asked of him at VFL level.

Braydon Preuss is another in the running to give North a boost in the ruck division after Matthew Kreuzer and Toby Nankervis came out victorious in their respective matchups over the last two games.

Forwards

Having served his VFL suspension, Lindsay Thomas is now available for selection. It remains to be seen whether he’ll come straight back into the AFL side or regain his match fitness at Werribee.

Jed Anderson and Majak Daw have both been key players during Werribee’s five-game winning streak, making important contributions close to goal – and in Daw’s case, with additional stints in the ruck.