With a finals berth all but confirmed, North Melbourne will play its final home and away game outside Victoria on the weekend.

The Kangaroos will face Adelaide, a bogey side of late. The Crows have won the last three meetings between the sides.

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: Lindsay Thomas, Drew Petrie, Aaron Black
Fol: Todd Goldstein, Ben Cunnington, Levi Greenwood
Int: Lachlan Hansen, Jack Ziebell, Leigh Adams, Kayne Turner
Emer: Brad McKenzie, Mason Wood, Aaron Mullett

In: Lachlan Hansen, Kayne Turner
Out: Daniel Wells (suspension), Brent Harvey (suspension)

Adelaide

B: Luke Thompson, Ben Rutten, Luke Brown
HB: Brodie Smith, Daniel Talia, Rory Laird
C: Brodie Martin, Scott Thompson, Rory Sloane
HF: Richard Douglas, Josh Jenkins, Matthew Wright
F: James Podsiadly, Taylor Walker, Eddie Betts
Fol: Sam Jacobs, Patrick Dangerfield, Brad Crouch
Int: Matthew Jaensch, Jarryd Lyons, Charlie Cameron, Ricky Henderson
Emer: Brent Reilly, Sam Kerridge, Mitch Grigg

In: Ben Rutten, Rory Laird, Scott Thompson
Out: Sam Shaw, Mitch Grigg, David Mackay

Interstate travels

Heading into 2014, North’s interstate record didn’t make for good reading. Since the beginning of 2011, the Kangaroos had won just six of 22 trips, with three of those victories coming against expansion clubs.

However the form line has changed drastically this season. North has saluted in both trips to Patersons Stadium and its visit to the SCG among five wins on the road. Another victory against Adelaide would take the total to six for the season; as much as the previous three seasons put together.

Meanwhile, Adelaide is yet to defeat a top eight team away from home in 2014. Its five wins outside South Australia have come against St Kilda, the Western Bulldogs, Brisbane, Collingwood and the GWS Giants. Its losses have been to Essendon, Geelong, Carlton and Fremantle.

Forward lines

The addition of an in-form Ben Brown to the North forward line has significantly increased the team’s scoring power.

n the six games Brown has played this season, the Kangaroos have averaged 101.7 points per game, compared to 85.1 in his absence.

However in Daniel Talia, Adelaide has arguably the most underrated key-position defender in the competition. It was hardly a coincidence that when he went down with concussion against West Coast, the Eagles were able to romp their way to 136 points and a five-goal win at Adelaide Oval.

The Crows have a fearful forward line of their own. Taylor Walker, Josh Jenkins, James Podsiadly and Eddie Betts are all capable of kicking big bags of goals. In their 36-point victory against North in Round 13, the quartet kicked nine goals between them, all causing problems for defenders at different stages.

Do or die

North’s last two victories have essentially guaranteed a place in September, barring a series of extraordinary events. Its opponents have no such luxury; Adelaide is in a grim battle with four other clubs, all gunning for eighth place.

The Crows must win to keep its season alive and will come at North with everything. Considering the Kangaroos are safe inside the eight, they have to be cautious of taking the foot off the pedal subconsciously, ever so slightly. Any such effort could be a recipe for disaster at Blundstone Arena on Saturday afternoon.