Luke McDonald says North will go in confident at its home away from home in Hobart on Friday night.
The Roos have won their past seven matches at Blundstone Arena, including a 35-point victory against Richmond last year.
“We’ve made it a bit of a fortress as of late, and it will be good to play down there for the first Friday night game,” McDonald said.
“Hopefully we see a big sea of blue and white and we are really excited to get down there.”
North last faced Richmond in the 2015 Elimination Final, and won by 17 points; the Tigers no doubt desperate for revenge.
“They’re in really good form and it’s a really big challenge for us,” McDonald said.
“Obviously it was disappointing last week, losing to Sydney, but we’re hoping to bounce back.
“It’s a really good test against Richmond.”
Damien Hardwick’s team has won its past three matches, with skipper Trent Cotchin in fine form.
Ben Jacobs held Cotchin to just nine possessions in the final, but will be missing from the Roos’ lineup due to a foot injury.
“Obviously Benny’s not there this week which is disappointing for him, but I’m sure a few guys will have roles and hopefully we can get a similar outcome.”