Teams
North Melbourne
B: Scott McMahon, Scott Thompson, Michael Firrito
HB: Aaron Mullett, Nathan Grima, Jamie Macmillan
C: Daniel Wells, Shaun Atley, Sam Wright
HF: Aaron Black, Majak Daw, Taylor Hine
F: Lindsay Thomas, Drew Petrie, Leigh Adams
Fol: Todd Goldstein, Andrew Swallow, Jack Ziebell
Int: Ryan Bastinac, Ben Cunnington, Sam Gibson, Will Sierakowski
Emer: Daniel Currie, Liam Anthony, Lachlan Hansen
In: Will Sierakowski
Out: Liam Anthony
New: Will Sierakowski
Port Adelaide
B: Campbell Heath, Alipate Carlisle, Lewis Stevenson
HB: Cameron O'Shea, Tom Jonas, Dom Cassisi
C: Brad Ebert, Travis Boak, Hamish Hartlett
HF: Chad Wingard, Justin Westhoff, Paul Stewart
F: Jake Neade, Jay Schulz, Robbie Gray
Fol: Matthew Lobbe, Oliver Wines, Kane Cornes
Int: Brent Renouf, Matthew Broadbent, Angus Monfries, Kane Mitchell
Emer: John Butcher, Andrew Moore, Sam Colquhoun
In: Kane Mitchell
Out: Jackson Trengove (foot)
Key player
North Melbourne
Drew Petrie
As mentioned in this week's Scouting Report, Petrie will be a critical part of North's forward line. With a strong recent form-line against the Power, the vice-captain may need another bag of goals for the Kangaroos to leave Hobart with the four points.
Port Adelaide
Justin Westhoff
The much-maligned Westhoff has turned a new leaf in 2013, becoming one of the form players in competition.
Whether it be forward, back, in the middle or even in the ruck, Westhoff’s versatility is of huge benefit to the Power. He had a quiet last week against West Coast, and will be looking to bounce back in style.
Young guns
North Melbourne
Will Sierakowski
Sierakowski finally gets his opportunity at AFL level on Saturday after being named to make his debut.
The 22-year old was originally picked up in the 2009 Rookie Draft by Hawthorn before North traded for him in 2011. In his second year at Aegis Park, disposal by foot is a feature of Sierakowski’s game and it’s expected his team-mates will look for him at every opportunity.
Port Adelaide
Ollie Wines
While there are many Port youngsters to choose from, Wines has arguably been the most impressive of the lot.
Looking every bit a ready-made AFL player at 18 years of age, Wines has averaged 23 disposals in his first five games and has become one of the Power's most important midfielders already.
Defensive battles
North Melbourne
Taylor Hine and Sam Wright
After playing off half-back in his first two appearances for 2013, Wright found himself playing as a defensive forward against Hawthorn. He matched up the dangerous Grant Birchall and did a fantastic job quelling his influence.
Wright and Taylor Hine will most likely shoulder the burden of the defensive roles further up the field, trying to shut down Port's transition into attack.
Port Adelaide
Dom Cassisi and Kane Cornes
The former captain and the 250-game player form a formidable stopping group in the middle. They'll have plenty of options to match up on, with Andrew Swallow, Jack Ziebell and Daniel Wells all in good form.
The North trio were the three highest disposal winners in the last meeting between the two clubs, making the role of Cassisi and Cornes pivotal.
Setting up a season
Many would agree that North has had one of the toughest starts to 2013 of any team, and a 1-4 start means Brad Scott and his team will need to turn things around quickly to have any chance of playing in September.
If North can drag its win-loss record to somewhere around 5-6 or 6-5 by the mid-season break, it will have built a solid foundation to launch from in search of a second consecutive finals appearance.
