North defender Scott Thompson says he’s looking forward to taking on Collingwood's Travis Cloke on Sunday.
While it’s yet to be decided if Thompson lines up on Cloke at the first bounce, there’s no doubt the two will cross paths at some point.
"Last year I got him (Cloke), the year before I didn’t, so it will probably be myself or Robbie Tarrant and he’s obviously played a great game on the weekend as well (against Gold Coast)," Thompson said on SEN’s Morning Glory on Thursday.
"He’s probably one of the strongest forwards in the AFL. We’ll go through the matchups today and decide who lines up on him."
Thompson said there had been plenty to work on during training, after last week’s disappointing loss at the hands of an undefeated Fremantle.
"Our ball movement still needs some improvement. This year, we’ve struggled a bit with it and we need to improve that."
The number 16 said the loss to the Dockers showed just how tough a trip to Domain Stadium can be.
"You know going in to the game the pressure is going to be pretty high and the pressure was very high and we didn’t handle it ... we turned over the ball and lost by a fair bit," Thompson said.
"It’s like a manic pressure and they come from everywhere. They’ve got the pace in the forward line to put that great pressure on."
Meanwhile, Thompson said the potential return of injured forward Ben Brown (knee soreness) could be vital to the Kangaroos' chances against Collingwood.
"He’s been a great player for us this year, so I’m definitely hoping he’s back in this week," he said.
When Thompson first laid eyes on Brown, he was immediately impressed.
"When he came (to North), he’d played for (VFL affiliate) Werribee so I knew a little bit about him, but when I trained against him I realised he was going to be a good player.
"He’s obviously got that height and takes the ball at the highest point which is really hard to defend. Over the last year or so, he’s really improved and is going to be a tough opponent for anyone."
Taming Travis
Scott Thompson says he’s looking forward to taking on Collingwood's Travis Cloke on Sunday.