The two sides are set to play out another tight encounter, with Kangaroos' coach Brad Scott suggesting it would be a defensive struggle similar to Round 2.
A North victory would leave it with one hand on a finals appearance.
Teams
North Melbourne
B: Michael Firrito, Scott Thompson, Luke McDonald
HB: Shaun Atley, Nathan Grima, Sam Wright
C: Ryan Bastinac, Andrew Swallow, Ben Jacobs
HF: Nick Dal Santo, Ben Brown, Sam Gibson
F: Brent Harvey, Drew Petrie, Lindsay Thomas
Fol: Todd Goldstein, Ben Cunnington, Jack Ziebell
Int: Daniel Wells, Leigh Adams, Levi Greenwood, Aaron Black
Emer: Mason Wood, Kayne Turner, Aaron Mullett
In: Daniel Wells, Levi Greenwood
Out: Kayne Turner (rested), Aaron Mullett (omitted)
Western Bulldogs
B: Liam Picken, Jordan Roughead, Mark Austin
HB: Robert Murphy, Dale Morris, Shaun Higgins
C: Sam Darley, Matthew Boyd, Adam Cooney
HF: Marcus Bontempelli, Stewart Crameri, Koby Stevens
F: Luke Dahlhaus, Jake Stringer, Lachlan Hunter
Fol: Will Minson, Ryan Griffen, Tom Liberatore
Int: Jake Macrae, Daniel Giansiracusa, Jason Johannisen, Tom Campbell
Emer: Jarrard Grant, Tom Young, Jason Tutt
In: Jason Johannisen, Daniel Giansiracusa
Out: Easton Wood (hand), Nathan Hrovat (ankle)
Current form
North and the Western Bulldogs are coming off convincing victories against GWS and St Kilda respectively.
For the former it was a good way to bounce back after consecutive losses. After conceding 220 points in the defeats against Carlton and Geelong, the Giants were held to only seven goals.
With Ben Brown back in the side, the forward line sailed past the 100-point barrier for the first time since Round 16.
Interestingly, North has averaged 99.8 points per game in Brown's five appearances, compared to 85.1 in its other games this season.
Meanwhile the Bulldogs have won four of their last eight games after only winning three of their first 11. Victories over Collingwood, Melbourne, Gold Coast and St Kilda have been fuelled by their youngsters coming of age.
Jake Stringer has kicked 16 goals in the last six games while Marcus Bontempelli has become the standout favourite for the NAB Rising Star. With the midfield also gelling as a unit, there will be challenges for North all over the field on Sunday.
Milestone history
In a rare occurrence, on Sunday it will be the Bulldogs with a milestone against North and not the other way round.
In 2013, Michael Firrito and Scott Thompson celebrated their 200th and 100th games respectively against the Bulldogs. The year prior it was Jack Ziebell's 50th and Brad McKenzie's debut. In 2011, Andrew Swallow played his 100th game, while in 2010 Aaron Edwards played his 50th match and Marcus White debuted.
On Sunday Ryan Griffen plays his 200th game. The skipper has a history of playing well against the Kangaroos - his disposal average of 24.6 is his fourth highest against all clubs and second when facing non-expansion clubs.
It is the second milestone in consecutive games against North at Etihad Stadium. In Round 19 against Geelong, James Kelly celebrated his 250th game and the Kangaroos were defeated by 32 points.
Two other losses this season have coincided with opposition milestones. In Round 1, Jake Carlisle played his 50th game while in Round 13 Brent Reilly played his 200th.
Tagging and matchups
In Round 2, Lindsay Thomas was greeted by Liam Picken and Brent Harvey proceeded to be the best man on the ground for the afternoon.
It's likely that Harvey will have Picken as a companion on Sunday, which raises the question of who the remaining midfielders will match up on. With Mitch Wallis unavailable due to injury, the Bulldogs are short one of their top-line defensive players.
Conversely, when Levi Greenwood entered the field as a substitute in the early-season meeting, he shadowed Griffen for the final term. While the Roos' on-baller took the points on that occasion, his opponent was not at full fitness. Late in the year he's found his best form.
With the battle of the midfield likely to decide which team leaves Etihad with the four points, the jigsaw puzzle on the matchup board will be intriguing.
