In Round 13, Adelaide was able to control play through holding possession – it had 24 more marks and more than three minutes extra with the Sherrin in hand, a huge difference in a game of AFL football.
However, the script was flipped at Blundstone Arena. With Adelaide’s uncontested marks minimised, it was unable to move the ball like last time.
The Crows had only 56 uncontested marks on Saturday – it was the fourth lowest total North has held an opponent to all year. Perhaps in an even more encouraging sign, two of those four totals have come in the last fortnight.
| Round, Opponent | Uncontested marks v North |
| Round 21 v Western Bulldogs | 46 |
| Round 16 v Hawthorn | 53 |
| Round 4 v Sydney | 53 |
| Round 22 v Adelaide | 56 |
The lack of uncontested marks also meant Adelaide was unable to move the ball freely out of its defensive half, and North capitalised on its work.
Forcing a turnover in your forward half generally leaves a side in a very good position to score, and North turned Adelaide over on 19 times in that area. 11 of those efforts resulted in scoring shots, and if it weren’t for inaccuracy (5 goals, 6 behinds), it could have led to a larger winning margin.
| North Melbourne | Forward half | Defensive half |
| Total turnovers forced | 19 | 46 |
| Points from turnovers | 36 | 32 |
In the final term, with everything on the line for Adelaide, North won the quarter on the way to a seven-point victory.
It was further testament to the side’s excellent fitness base and belief it can over run any side. The Kangaroos were facing another quality second half outfit though – Adelaide had won 25 second half quarters before Saturday’s game.
However at the conclusion of Round 22, no team in the AFL has won more second half quarters than North (29), with Port Adelaide equal at the top.
| Team | Second half quarters won |
| North Melbourne | 29 |
| Port Adelaide | 29 |
| Hawthorn | 28 |
| Sydney | 27 |
On a defensive note, North’s desperate stand in the second quarter saved it from entering the rooms with a bigger deficit.
The Kangaroos spent only 30.7 per cent in their forward half, and conceded 20 inside 50’s. However Adelaide only kicked three goals in the quarter when on general play it probably deserved a few more.
North was able to set up well defensively and repel many of the Crows’ inside 50 entries – of the 20, half of them were turnovers.
