eth-dog
Tier 1 WW Player
Observations
Essendon: Essendon beat Fremantle in Melbourne again, in a topsy-turvy battle. Essendon had a 3 goal final quarter to 1 to win the match, but inside midfielder Darcy Parish continued his career best form with 39 disposals, 10 clearances and a goal, whilst Harrison Jones and Anthony McDonald-Tipungwuti kicked 2 apiece up front.
North Melbourne: North had their first win for the season after being 32 points down at one stage, fighting back to win by 7 points. Jye Simpkin and Ben Cunnington were dominant in the middle, winning 75 disposals and 26 clearances between them whilst up forward mediums Cameron Zurhaar and Taylor Garner kicked 7 goals between them.
Head to Head (last 5)
Essendon 5-0 North Melbourne
Form Guide
Essendon: 1W 3L
North Melbourne: 1W 4L
Sportsbet odds
Essendon: $1.31
North Melbourne: $3.37
Line: 19.5 ($1.90)
Possible sides
Essendon vs North Melbourne
FB: Jordan Ridley - James Stewart - Jayden Laverde
FF: Curtis Taylor - Nick Larkey - Tristan Xerri
HB: Nick Hind - Aaron Francis - Mason Redman
HF: Taylor Garner - Cameron Zurhaar - Tarryn Thomas
MF: Kyle Langford - Andrew McGrath - Brayden Ham
MF: Trent Dumont - Ben Cunnington - Aaron Hall
HF: Will Snelling - Harrison Jones - Archie Perkins
HB: Jack Ziebell - Lachie Young - Kayne Turner
FF: Peter Wright - Cale Hooker - Anthony McDonald-Tipungwuti
FB: Josh Walker - Ben McKay - Shaun Atley
OB: Andrew Phillips - Zachary Merrett - Darcy Parish
OB: Todd Goldstein - Jye Simpkin - Luke Davies-Uniacke
IC: Matthew Guelfi - Dyson Heppell - Nik Cox - Alec Waterman
IC: Connor Menadue - Charlie Lazzaro - Tom Powell - Will Phillips
IS: David Zaharakis
IS: Jack Mahoney
Essendon in: Alec Waterman; Out: Devon Smith (hamstring)
North Melbourne in: Tristan Xerri; Out: Tom Campbell
North Melbourne defence vs Essendon forward line
Essendon have been the second most efficient forward line in the league this season, kicking a goal 25.10% of the time it enters their forward 50. North Melbourne have been the worst defensive group in the league, conceding a goal 27.08% of the time it enters their defensive 50. Cale Hooker has had a slight downturn in form, but still has 22 goals in 9 games and will likely get young key defender Ben McKay, who is having a real break out year, whilst Josh Walker will probably take Essendon recruit Peter Wright. Anthony McDonald-Tipungwuti is in career best form with 22 goals, no small forward has more this year and will present a challenge for Shaun Atley, Atley, Atley and the other small defenders for North Melbourne.
Midfield/rucks battle
The two clubs have been very weak on the inside this season, Essendon being 16th and 17th for contested possession and clearance difference respectively whilst North Melbourne are 18th and 16th in the two areas respectively. Darcy Parish and Ben Cunnington are likely to go head to head, Essendon will support Parish with the likes of Andrew McGrath, Zach Merrett and Kyle Langford whilst North will be using Luke Davies-Unaicke, Jye Simpkin and Tom Powell on the inside. Essendon will probably hold the advantage on the outside with their style of play and the likes of Nik Cox and Brayden Ham being more utilised on the wings so far this season, whilst North Melbourne will be looking for Aaron Hall to continue his good form so far this season, the outside mid averaging 23 disposals. Rucks wise, Andrew Phillips struggled last week against Sean Darcy and will come up against one of the best rucks in the game in Todd Goldstein.
North Melbourne forward line vs Essendon defence
North Melbourne have the weakest forward line in the AFL, kicking a goal only 17.5% of the time it enters their forward 50. Essendon have struggled defensively this season, conceding a goal 26.14% of the time they enter their forward 50, 16th in the AFL. Nick Larkey is the leading goal scorer for North, with 11 goals in the first 9 games, but will get a tough match up from James Stewart whilst Cameron Zurhaar and Taylor Garner will attract attention from forward cum defender Jayden Laverde and Jordan Ridley respectively in all likelihood, whilst Tarryn Thomas will have a challenge from Nick Hind, who has been one of the recruits of the season.
X-Factor Player
Mason Redman has been a revelation this season, going back to his form in 2019 rather than 2020, his run and carry has been vital in all three of Essendon's victories. Player to watch for this clash.
Key stat
Essendon: Inside 50's. Essendon need 50+ inside 50's to win a game of football, they're good at generating shots at goal when in there.
North Melbourne: Clearances. Their midfield needs to back up their game from last week if they're any chance of victory.
Tip
Essendon should be better, so I'll tip them by 23 points.
Essendon: Essendon beat Fremantle in Melbourne again, in a topsy-turvy battle. Essendon had a 3 goal final quarter to 1 to win the match, but inside midfielder Darcy Parish continued his career best form with 39 disposals, 10 clearances and a goal, whilst Harrison Jones and Anthony McDonald-Tipungwuti kicked 2 apiece up front.
North Melbourne: North had their first win for the season after being 32 points down at one stage, fighting back to win by 7 points. Jye Simpkin and Ben Cunnington were dominant in the middle, winning 75 disposals and 26 clearances between them whilst up forward mediums Cameron Zurhaar and Taylor Garner kicked 7 goals between them.
Head to Head (last 5)
Essendon 5-0 North Melbourne
Form Guide
Essendon: 1W 3L
North Melbourne: 1W 4L
Sportsbet odds
Essendon: $1.31
North Melbourne: $3.37
Line: 19.5 ($1.90)
Possible sides
Essendon vs North Melbourne
FB: Jordan Ridley - James Stewart - Jayden Laverde
FF: Curtis Taylor - Nick Larkey - Tristan Xerri
HB: Nick Hind - Aaron Francis - Mason Redman
HF: Taylor Garner - Cameron Zurhaar - Tarryn Thomas
MF: Kyle Langford - Andrew McGrath - Brayden Ham
MF: Trent Dumont - Ben Cunnington - Aaron Hall
HF: Will Snelling - Harrison Jones - Archie Perkins
HB: Jack Ziebell - Lachie Young - Kayne Turner
FF: Peter Wright - Cale Hooker - Anthony McDonald-Tipungwuti
FB: Josh Walker - Ben McKay - Shaun Atley
OB: Andrew Phillips - Zachary Merrett - Darcy Parish
OB: Todd Goldstein - Jye Simpkin - Luke Davies-Uniacke
IC: Matthew Guelfi - Dyson Heppell - Nik Cox - Alec Waterman
IC: Connor Menadue - Charlie Lazzaro - Tom Powell - Will Phillips
IS: David Zaharakis
IS: Jack Mahoney
Essendon in: Alec Waterman; Out: Devon Smith (hamstring)
North Melbourne in: Tristan Xerri; Out: Tom Campbell
North Melbourne defence vs Essendon forward line
Essendon have been the second most efficient forward line in the league this season, kicking a goal 25.10% of the time it enters their forward 50. North Melbourne have been the worst defensive group in the league, conceding a goal 27.08% of the time it enters their defensive 50. Cale Hooker has had a slight downturn in form, but still has 22 goals in 9 games and will likely get young key defender Ben McKay, who is having a real break out year, whilst Josh Walker will probably take Essendon recruit Peter Wright. Anthony McDonald-Tipungwuti is in career best form with 22 goals, no small forward has more this year and will present a challenge for Shaun Atley, Atley, Atley and the other small defenders for North Melbourne.
Midfield/rucks battle
The two clubs have been very weak on the inside this season, Essendon being 16th and 17th for contested possession and clearance difference respectively whilst North Melbourne are 18th and 16th in the two areas respectively. Darcy Parish and Ben Cunnington are likely to go head to head, Essendon will support Parish with the likes of Andrew McGrath, Zach Merrett and Kyle Langford whilst North will be using Luke Davies-Unaicke, Jye Simpkin and Tom Powell on the inside. Essendon will probably hold the advantage on the outside with their style of play and the likes of Nik Cox and Brayden Ham being more utilised on the wings so far this season, whilst North Melbourne will be looking for Aaron Hall to continue his good form so far this season, the outside mid averaging 23 disposals. Rucks wise, Andrew Phillips struggled last week against Sean Darcy and will come up against one of the best rucks in the game in Todd Goldstein.
North Melbourne forward line vs Essendon defence
North Melbourne have the weakest forward line in the AFL, kicking a goal only 17.5% of the time it enters their forward 50. Essendon have struggled defensively this season, conceding a goal 26.14% of the time they enter their forward 50, 16th in the AFL. Nick Larkey is the leading goal scorer for North, with 11 goals in the first 9 games, but will get a tough match up from James Stewart whilst Cameron Zurhaar and Taylor Garner will attract attention from forward cum defender Jayden Laverde and Jordan Ridley respectively in all likelihood, whilst Tarryn Thomas will have a challenge from Nick Hind, who has been one of the recruits of the season.
X-Factor Player
Mason Redman has been a revelation this season, going back to his form in 2019 rather than 2020, his run and carry has been vital in all three of Essendon's victories. Player to watch for this clash.
Key stat
Essendon: Inside 50's. Essendon need 50+ inside 50's to win a game of football, they're good at generating shots at goal when in there.
North Melbourne: Clearances. Their midfield needs to back up their game from last week if they're any chance of victory.
Tip
Essendon should be better, so I'll tip them by 23 points.
