Adam Simpson says West Coast expects a hot contest against North on Sunday.

While his side took the points when the sides last met in the 2015 Preliminary Final, the Eagles’ coach is wary of the Roos’ improvement.

“The brand of footy they play is really combative and a contested, inside type of game,” Simpson said.

“If you don’t match North in that area, you are going to get exposed.”

North and the Eagles sit seventh and eighth respectively on the AFL ladder, with Sunday’s points vital heading into the back half of the season.

Brad Scott’s team won its first nine games, before dropping four of the last five.

But Simpson rates his former side highly.

“They’re (the Kangaroos) in full contention for going all the way this year,” he said.

“I think the one thing that we know about North is the brand they play is built for finals.

“We’ve had some really good battles with them of late, and obviously last time we played them here was a good result for us, but it’s a combative, finals type of football they play.

“That’s the exciting part for us … where are we at? We’ll find out this week.”

The ruck battle is sure to be an intriguing one, with Nic Naitanui out and Scott Lycett set to shoulder the bulk of the work against Todd Goldstein.

Last week, Mitch Brown was used as a second ruckman, while Jeremy McGovern is also an option for the Eagles.

“’Browny’ has never rucked before and ‘Gov’ claims he has but I don’t reckon he has either,” Simpson said.

“The work [Dean Cox] has done with them on the training track can only take you so far.

“To expose these guys in probably the toughest position on the ground is difficult.”

The Eagles are set to recall forward Josh Hill, who last played in Round 13.