North forward Drew Petrie is ready to lock horns with Richmond defender Alex Rance at Hobart’s Blundstone Arena on Saturday.
The 32-year-old matched up on Rance for much of the game when the two sides met in round 12 last year, finishing with four goals and 15 touches in his team's come-from-behind 28-point win.
Petrie said Rance can punish teams on the counter-attack in addition to his natural defensive traits.
"He’s a player you’ve got to watch when the Tigers have the ball because he likes to get involved in changes of possession off half-back," Petrie told NMFC.com.au on Tuesday.
"With Rance defensively, he’s very hard to play on because he’s strong and reads the play really well."
The All Australian Richmond defender is not the only player who could cause headaches for the Roos, with the threat equally dangerous at the other end of the ground.
"Jack Riewoldt’s a very good marking forward and allowing him to run and jump at the footy freely is a no-no for our defenders," Petrie said.
"Playing in his home state, I’m sure he’ll be keen to do very well."
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From a personal perspective, Petrie said he is yet to reach peak form – he has registered eight goals in the first five rounds of the season.
At the same time last year, the 197cm tall had kicked just three goals before performing strongly at the back end of the season.
Petrie said he is confident he can again hit top form in the coming weeks.
"I see my main job as a forward is to kick goals for the team and help us win that way, but making sure that I kick goals the right way and not just bludging inside 50 all day," he said.
"Whilst I’m not playing as well as I would like to, I feel as though each week I’ve been getting slightly better and marking the footy a bit better.
"I didn’t capitalise on opportunities last week against Hawthorn, but I’m certainly not discouraged with how I’ve been going."
Petrie said fellow forward Ben Brown continues to captivate his teammates with his towering presence in attack.
"He’s unique because he’s so tall and he’s got a really long stretch when he reaches out and tries to mark the footy," he said.
"He’s demanding a good defender and a tall defender because if you put anyone undersized on him, then he’s able to exploit those match-ups."
Mason Wood’s transition further up the ground has also caught the eye of the vice-captain.
"He’s got a great endurance level that sees him suit the wing a lot better now," Petrie added.
"(I’m) not lining up alongside Mason as much in the first few games of the season, (I’m) more on the end of Mason’s kicks."
