The Wednesday Warmup - Round 4

ROUND 4

North Melbourne v Western Bulldogs

4:40PM, Friday April 14th

Etihad Stadium

LAST TIME WE MET:

Round 20, 2016

Western Bulldogs 9.7.61 d North Melbourne 7.5.47

In the second low-scoring affair between these two teams, the Bulldogs reversed the result, after suffering a loss to North Melbourne earlier in the year. The match as a contest was intense and goals were very difficult to come by, with just 16 scored for the entire match.

The game will be best remembered for the several scuffles which occured throughout the first half, most of which were instigated by the Kangaroos in an attempt to throw star Bulldogs Marcus Bontempelli. Despite the close attention, The Bont shrugged off the distraction to finish with the three Brownlow votes. Considering the lack of goals, it will come as no surprise to most that there were no multiple goal-kickers from either side on the night.

Marcus Bontempelli (R) was best-on-ground the last time the Bulldogs and Kangaroos clashed. Source: Getty Images

INJURY LIST

The most recent addition in this list is Liam Picken, who suffered a heavy hit in the second quarter during last week's game. The resulting concussion kept him out of the rest of the game, despite looking comfortable on the bench. He will be tested during the week but it wouldn't surprise me to see him get up for the Good Friday clash. In more positive news, Mitch Wallis looks like he could come back into the VFL within the next fortnight, which is fantastic news and will be the next major milestone in his return from a broken leg.

PREDICTED 22: (inclusions in BOLD)

B: S. Biggs, M.Adams, E.Wood HB: R.Murphy, F.Roberts, M.Suckling

C: L.Hunter, M.Bontempelli, J.Johannisen

HF: J.Stringer, T.Cloke, L.Dahlhaus

F: C.Daniel, T.Boyd, L.Picken

R: T.Campbell, T.Liberatore, L.Jong

I/C: C.Smith, J.Dunkley, J.Macrae, M.Boyd

Given his reputation of being an unflinching superhuman ironman, I fully expect that Liam Picken will at least be named when the team sheets come out tomorrow night, although given that the game is on a Friday, it wouldn't surprise me at all if he is a late withdraw, although I fancy the Dogs to name him just in case he gets up. It would be tempting to make wholesale changes after last week's effort, but injuries to specific players just Don’t allow us to carry that luxury at this stage. In a perfect world, Tom Campbell would receive reinforcements to combat the impressive duo of Todd Goldstein and Braydon Preuss, but with Jordan Roughead still out injured, Tim English only just returning to full fitness and with Will Minson having recently retired (in case you missed the news – some have), we haven’t got many ruck options to call upon. As a result, the ever-clever Luke Beveridge is going to have to improvise, meaning big men Tom Boyd and Travis Cloke have to keep their spots, despite both having sub-par performances on the weekend.

Toby McLean may consider himself unlucky to be dropped again, and will likely earn a late reprieve should Picken fail to get up, but the Bulldogs were beaten around coalface last week, and seasoned contested warriors are needed to combat the Roos this week. Whilst there wasn’t any VFL action for Footscray on the weekend, there are no shortages of suitable replacements. Mr. Midas Touch, aka Clay Smith couldn’t make a mistake during last year’s finals, even if he wanted to, and should get his opportunity on Friday, whilst Josh Dunkley won’t be far behind him. Zaine Cordy might be the one who is forced back to the VFL to gain some confidence. Lukas Webb and Bailey Dale will also be pushing for a spot in the inaugural Good Friday clash.

Our last encounter with North Melbourne was a very intense and physical one. Source: Getty Images

OPPOSITION WATCH:

Last Week: North Melbourne: 10.7.67 v GWS: 15.19.109

Coming up against one of the Premiership favourites was always going to be a difficult task for North Melbourne, but they still found themselves within 15 points of the Giants at three-quarter time, but a six-goal-to-two final term blew the game open, and saw the Giants emerge 42-point victors. Braydon Preuss continues to impress at the start of his career, finishing the game with 26 hitouts and two goals, whilst Jack Ziebell never stopped trying in his 150th game. The Roos skipper amassed 28 disposals and also got himself a goal.

Whilst it’s not yet clear what, if any, changes will be made at the Bulldogs, you can guarantee at least one change will be made for North Melbourne, with key defender Scott Thompson free to play having served a one-match suspension. Majak Daw missed out on last week due to concussion and may return, as may Jy Simpkin who sat out with a corked thigh. Key players Jarrad Waite and Ben Jacobs will certainly miss, whilst Mason Wood might have recovered from a knee injury, but will almost certainly be selected at VFL level if he is fit by this week.

THE KEY:

Winning the contested ball will be pivotal to determining the outcome of this game. The Bulldogs were elite in that department last season, ranking #2 in the competition for contested possession, and it became a hallmark of our successful final's campaign, going at +27.75 on average during the finals series - an unprecedented figure. But the Bulldogs have laboured somewhat this year, going at -5 in total for contested possessions this year, including a -26 shellacking at the hands of Collingwood in Round 1. We also defeated Fremantle in the contested possession stakes last week (+5), but their domination in the last term told the tale in the end.

It's an area that North Melbourne have also struggled in. After recording narrow victories in the first two games, they were completely outmuscled by the Giants last week, losing the count by 29, which is a significant gap when it comes to contested possessions. The heat will certainly be on the Dogs this week as contested football is their biggest strength, and if they can bounce back to their best in that area against North Melbourne, then it will go a long way to securing the Bulldogs third win of the season, whilst resigning North to a 0-4 record.

FUN FACT:

Both of these teams entered the league in 1925, and have gone on to play each other 157 times and share a dead-level record – 77 wins apiece with three draws. One of those draws occurred in our other Premiership year of 1954, where North Melbourne managed to score 2.1 in extra time to level the score. Each of the three draws have occurred when North Melbourne has been listed as the “home” team.

Amazingly, these two clubs have only ever competed against each other in one final. It occurred in the semi-final of 1985, where Simon Beasley scored his 100th goal of the season and finished with seven for the match. Other notable performers that day included Brian Royal (5 goals), and Doug Hawkins (43 disposals).

Friday’s game will be the first time a VFL/AFL match has been played on a Good Friday.