Match result

North Melbourne 16.17 113 defeats Frankston 8.7 55

In action

AFL-listed
Mitch Hibberd (23 disposals, 7 marks), Nick Larkey (8 disposals), Ben McKay (13 disposals, 7 marks), Dan Nielson (10 disposals, 6 marks), Will Walker (23 disposals, 7 tackles), Braydon Preuss (17 disposals, 1 goal), Josh Williams (15 disposals), Kyron Hayden (16 disposals, 4 tackles), Tom Murphy (11 disposals), Gordon Narrier (7 disposals, 2 goals), Declan Mountford (8 disposals), Oscar Junker (4 disposals)

VFL-listed
Tom Hotchin (8 disposals), Nick Rippon (24 disposals, 9 tackles), Ty Leonardis (17 disposals, 5 tackles), Nash Holmes (24 disposals, 5 tackles), Steve Stroobants (12 disposals, 3 goals), Chris Jansen (29 disposals, 5 tackles), Fraser Cameron (17 disposals, 5 marks), Louis Cunningham (19 disposals, 10 marks), Nick Hogan (13 disposals, 2 goals), Matt Northe (25 disposals, 1 goal), Lachlan Mirams (8 disposals, 3 goals)

Story of the game

North Melbourne overcame a third quarter arm wrestle from Frankston to score a lopsided win at Skybus Stadium on Sunday afternoon.

With both sides in the midst of a barren run, having lost a string of games, a win was imperative for the Roos’ hopes of a finals berth.

After playing a thriller in Round 3, North was determined to show its improvement against a side that had lost seven games in a row.

A nervy opening to the game validated the stakes, with clean possession coming at a premium.

However, a series of ball handling errors from the hosts allowed North to break away just before the first break, in an opening term that was won by precise kicking from the returning Steve Stroobants and Lachlan Mirams.

An 11-goal first half, including six majors kicking with the wind in the second term allowed the Roos to boast a 53-point buffer at half-time.

The determined Dolphins weren’t going down without resistance, booting five goals in the third quarter to provide the visitors with a timely reality check, proving that the game was still up for grabs.

Frustrated by its inability to translate possession into goals, North slowed down the play in the final term, playing with poise and purpose, restricting Frankston to just one behind.

In the end, the experience ball-handling from North’s midfield brigade proved to be the difference.

“It was good, especially the first half,” Loader told North Media.

“The style of footy we really wanted to play in the first half, we looked pretty organised across the ground. It was a very pleasing performance before half-time.

“To Frankston’s credit, they came out and they served it up to us after half-time.

“We went away a little bit from how we want to play, we probably got the result we wanted in the end on the road, but there’s plenty to learn from it.

“The boys really enjoyed it as everyone does when you’re up and about and get four points. It gives us a bit of stepping stone into the next few games of footy.

“We look forward to the challenges in front of us. We’ll keep working week-to-week and keep trying to win games of footy.

Best of AFL

Mitch Hibberd

The developer defender was a vital cog in North’s defensive six, showing resolve when the going got tough.

The strong-bodied 21-year-old was a standout in the Roos’ young backline, enjoying plenty of possession while maintaining his solid recent form. He finished with 23 touches.

Until the late efforts of Ben McKay shone through, Hibberd looked to have taken the best mark of the day after out-leaping his opposite number in an impressive contested play.

“It was a good win, we’ve had a couple of tough weeks,” he told North Media.

“I just read the ball and took a jump at it, but Benny’ McKay has outdone me, or that’s what he’s telling me anyway. Hopefully I can take a few more of those.

“They beat us earlier on in the year and we probably owed them one. It was nice to beat them today and a big improvement this week, but the key is stringing four quarters of footy together.”

Best of VFL

Lachlan Mirams

After working hard to earn his first game in the royal blue and white last weekend, Mirams made the game his own in just his second appearance.

Playing against his former side, he was a mainstay in North’s forward six, booting three goals in an authoritative first half showing.

As the 24-year-old admits, it was rewarding to boot a handful of goals against familiar opposition.

“I spent three years here [in Frankston] before they dissolved,” Mirams told North Media.

“It was a nice feeling to get on the end of a few. Credit to all the boys for hitting me up and [I was] in the right place at the right time.

“It was good to have the wind in the last quarter and run out the game strong. That was a good feeling.”

Talking points

Battling against the wind
Although the conditions were picturesque, a slight breeze came through at the first bounce.

Despite having built a sizable buffer before the main break, North’s lead was reduced significantly in a third quarter. As the wind increased dramatically, this provided difficult conditions to kick against.

In that time Frankston booted five goals, before North recovered for a strong final term.

“[We] just got messy quickly and allowed Frankston to get shots on goal,” Loader told North Media.

“They were kicking probably with a couple of goal breeze, but that turned into four or five goals pretty quickly.

“We’ve got to get better at being able to curb the flow of the game. That’s plenty of stuff we can work on during the week. The message was to stay strong for what worked for us and we’ll continue to do that.”

Equal contribution
Boosted by the return of Nick Larkey, most expected North to rely heavily on its leading goal-scorer.

However, on a day where accurate goal-kicking proved to hard to come by, the emergence of second-gamer Mirams and Stroobants was a notable storyline.

The pair combined for six goals, including a last-gasp effort right on the siren, to give North an even spread in front of goal.

“It’s good when guys haven’t played a lot of football with us and they come out and have an impact,” Loader added.

“They both kicked three goals today and they were both pretty solid, I thought.”

Reliable back six
Having lost key defender Sam Durdin for the remainder of the season due to a broken right tibia, North was forced to reshuffle its back six.

Despite facing pressure in the third quarter, North’s young backline rallied for an impressive overall performance.

This was highlighted by the ambitious marking effort of defensive trio Dan Nielson, Ben McKay and Mitch Hibberd, with McKay grabbing a late contender that was arguably the best mark on this particular day.

Nielson also ran back with the flight of the ball in the third term, taking a typically courageous grab of his own,

“We had some really good players [down back],” Loader added.

“We had two or three guys down back in Nielson [and] McKay again. Hibberd was pretty good today; they gave us that stability behind the ball.”

Squaring the ledger
The memorable win allowed North to vanquish the demons from an earlier loss to Frankston in Round 3, which sits as one of only two wins secured by the Dolphins this year.

Although the result is more about the performance than making amends, Loader said the win will boost the confidence of the playing group ahead of a crucial month of footy.

“We’re improving in areas of the game every week with individual players,” he said.

“There’s always going to be that growth mind-set with what we’re doing. It’s nice just to get a win on the board and even the ledger.

“We look forward again to next week.”