North Melbourne and Richmond have fought out some pretty tough contests in recent times. Since 2010, the teams have met three times with North winning two of those encounters and Richmond the other.
Overall, the clubs have met on 150 occasions and the Tigers have the bragging rights, winning 82 and losing 66. There have been 2 draws, the most recent in Round 16, 2009.
Key match-ups
Rucks
Almost every week, the ruckmen have a do-or-die battle and Todd Goldstein faces another one of those scenarios possibly against Ivan Maric. The Tigers’ big-man was a late withdrawal from the loss to the Gold Coast last weekend with general soreness but is tipped to return on Sunday.
With contested footy so vital these days, the quality of tap-work from Goldstein and Maric will go a long way to shaping the result.
The players are close statistically with Maric slightly more dominant so far this season.
| Player | Ave. disp | Ave. hit-outs | Ave. marks |
| Ivan Maric | 16.3 | 30.9 | 4.8 |
| Todd Goldstein | 13.5 | 30.4 | 3.2 |
However, Goldstein’s slow start and poor early form must be taken into account with the 24-year old’s numbers on the rise in the second half of the year.
Both can spend significant minutes on the ground so it could come down to a battle of attrition. Goldstein played 100 per cent of the match against Carlton on Friday night while Maric often spends upward of 90 per cent game time on the field.
Drew Petrie
In scintillating form after 7 goals against Carlton, Petrie would pose a massive threat to the stretched Tigers’ defensive line-up if he’s passed fit to play.
Alex Rance is likely to get the job and could be in for a hellish afternoon.
Kelvin Moore has played just the one game this year, Ben Griffiths has played six but was a late withdrawal last week, while Luke McGuane has played just two.
In what’s become a real strength for the Roos this season, Richmond can’t afford to pay too much attention to Petrie with Robbie Tarrant and Lachlan Hansen showing their improvement and ability to hurt the opposition.
In the past four weeks, the duo has combined for 19 goals, 37 marks and almost 80 disposals. Meanwhile Petrie alone has provided 13 goals, 27 marks and 45 disposals.
Cotchin, Deledio and Martin
A team-defence approach to shutting down Chris Judd last week didn’t quite go to plan for the Roos with the Blues’ captain collecting 36 disposals, 10 marks and 3 goals. It may cause the match committee to select a tagging option to go with one of the Tigers’ guns.
But who to tag? Trent Cotchin and Brett Deledio have been in stunning touch and Dustin Martin is on the way back with much to prove.
| Player | Ave. disp | Ave.cont disp | Ave. uncont disp | Ave. clearances |
| Trent Cotchin | 27.2 | 11.8 | 14.9 | 4.7 |
| Brett Deledio | 27.9 | 10.1 | 17.2 | 3.5 |
| Dustin Martin | 22.6 | 8.2 | 14.9 | 3.0 |
Last week against the Gold Coast, Cotchin and Deledio ran riot collecting a total of 74 possessions (27 contested), 18 marks and 11 inside 50s.
North might bring back Levi Greenwood to take one of the dangers out of the game or challenge its players to go head to head.
Who’s hot?
North - Nathan Grima
It’s not often a defender is highlighted in this category but there’s no denying Grima’s influence down back since his return from injury in Round 8.
In just the last two games, the 26-year old has got his fist to the ball more often than not, producing a remarkable 18 spoils. He also leads the team in marks per game with 7.62.
Richmond - Jack Riewoldt
An up and down season is heading in the right direction for the Tigers’ full forward after a day out against the Suns. Riewoldt finished with 5 goals, 16 possessions and 6 marks.
The x-factor
North - Ryan Bastinac
Bastinac could provide a significant boost to the Roos if he’s able to find the ball and hit the scoreboard on Sunday. With much of the Tigers’ focus likely to be on the likes of Brent Harvey, Andrew Swallow and Daniel Wells, Bastinac could find plenty of space to work in at the MCG.
Richmond - Dustin Martin
Martin looms as a massive in for the Tigers with his grunt around the stoppages, ability to win the ball and put a score on the board. Coming off a suspension and called out by many media experts for letting his side down, especially in light of its loss to Gold Coast, the young midfielder will be looking to get back some respect and trust from his team-mates.
The coaches
It’s been a roller coaster of a season for Brad Scott but the third year coach is finally reaping the rewards for staying positive, sticking to his game-plain and keeping the faith in his young brigade.
Damien Hardwick on the other hand would be tearing his hair out after his side faded in the dying seconds against the Suns to surrender a 10-point lead with less than 40 seconds remaining.
Both though, have bright futures with talented youngsters at their disposal and coming up through the ranks.
| Coach | Wins | Losses | Draws | Win % |
| Brad Scott | 29 | 30 | 0 | 49.2 |
| Damien Hardwick | 21 | 37 | 1 | 35.6 |
Missing in Action
Richmond
Nathan Foley (heel) Season
Jake King (knee) 3 weeks
Dylan Grimes (hamstring) Indefinite
Ty Vickery (shoulder) Season
Jake Batchelor (bruising) 2 weeks
North
Hamish McIntosh (knee) 2 weeks
Leigh Adams (shoulder) test
Drew Petrie (adductor) test
Tom Curran (foot) season
