Every week, we'll be heading into the archive to recap some of the great games throughout North Melbourne's rich history.

This week, we take you back to the Preliminary Final of 1996, and a memorable match against the Brisbane Bears at the MCG. 

Going into the centenary finals series, North had finished second and the Brisbane Bears third.

A final round loss against Collingwood had cost the Bears the chance at a direct path from the Qualifying Final to the Preliminary Final. Instead, they were forced to overcome Essendon (one point), before smashing Carlton by 97 points in the Semi-Final. 

North had cruised to the second last week of the season with a 60-point victory over Geelong in week one of the finals, thanks to a bag of seven goals from Brett Allison.

Of course, the Bears' missed in the final round was costly for more reasons than one - it meant a trip to the MCG against the Kangaroos, no easy challenge in just their second-ever finals campaign. 

Both teams boasted plenty of talent, both young and experienced, with the likes of Peter Bell (24 games), Adam Simpson (26) and Glenn Freeborn (27), led by John Blakey (224 games), Ian Fairley (216) and Wayne Carey (147) at North. While Craig Macrae (39 games), Justin Leppitsch (44) and Chris Scott (55) were learning from Roger Merrett (313 games), Michael McLean (182) and Craig Lambert (172).

For those who remember the '96 season fondly, you'll probably know what happened next ... but of course, nothing beats watching the highlights from a North Melbourne win.

Check out the best moments below, thanks to Mazda.