Three wins on the trot for North has laid an excellent foundation. A victory over Collingwood would give the Roos four wins out of five – since 1996 they have only bettered that mark on one occasion (2005).

Collingwood is another team coming off a quality victory, this time against Richmond. In many ways the Pies are in a similar position to the Roos, as will become evident throughout this preview.

Teams

North Melbourne

B: Michael Firrito, Nathan Grima, Nick Dal Santo
HB: Shaun Atley, Scott Thompson, Levi Greenwood
C: Sam Gibson, Ryan Bastinac, Brad McKenzie
HF: Lindsay Thomas, Aaron Black, Ben Cunnington
F: Leigh Adams, Drew Petrie, Lachlan Hansen
Fol: Todd Goldstein, Daniel Wells, Brent Harvey
Int: Daniel Currie, Ben Jacobs, Luke McDonald, Aaron Mullett
Emer: Sam Wright, Robin Nahas, Joel Tippett

In: Daniel Currie
Out: Robin Nahas (omitted)

Collingwood

B: Alan Toovey, Jack Frost, Tom Langdon
HB: Nick Maxwell, Lachlan Keeffe, Alex Fasolo
C: Steele Sidebottom, Brent Macaffer, Heritier Lumumba
HF: Dayne Beams, Jesse White, Luke Ball
F: Jamie Elliott, Travis Cloke, Jarrod Witts
Foll: Brodie Grundy, Dane Swan, Scott Pendlebury
Int: Tyson Goldsack, Jarryd Blair, Clinton Young, Josh Thomas
Emg: Sam Dwyer, Marty Clarke, Taylor Adams

Unchanged

Key positions

Both sides’ number one key forward has come under criticism in recent weeks for not hitting the scoreboard – and have been fiercely defended.

Brad Scott has made a point to highlight the role Drew Petrie is playing to the side. While the goal tally only reads three goals in four games, the interim captain has still been involved in one-fifth of North’s scoring shots.

Scott Pendlebury was also compelled to defend Travis Cloke. The Pies’ captain firm in stating Cloke’s value is not only on the scoreboard, with his work rate held in high esteem.

However, this may be the week both start to hit the scoreboard. Cloke has a good record against North, kicking nine goals in the two meetings last season. Meanwhile Petrie won’t have to deal with arguably either of Collingwood’s best two key defenders – Ben Reid and Nathan Brown both currently on the sidelines.

Second ruckman

North and Collingwood have consistently searched for the right ruck combination. Somewhat coincidentally, both sides are currently trialling players with genuine rucking skills as their second ruckman.

Daniel Currie returns for his third game. A late omission against the Swans due to the conditions, he has provided strong support for Goldstein, allowing him to finish out games strongly.

For Collingwood, Jarrod Witts has played two of four games supporting Brodie Grundy. Much like Currie, Witts has played as a deep key forward and second ruckman. At 209cm and 113kg, Witts is a tough cover.

Predicted rain on Saturday at the MCG may change the role of the second rucks and how the sides adjust could be pivotal.

Loose defenders

Since moving to the defensive half of the ground in the early stages of 2013, Lachlan Hansen has become an irreplaceable part of the North side. Often able to roam free as a spare, Hansen’s ability to mark everything in sight often acts as a springboard for rebound 50’s.

On the other side of the equation stands a man who has perfected the role of the sweeper. Throughout his decade-long career, Nick Maxwell has made teams pay for sloppy disposal going forward, reading the play and sending Collingwood forward on countless occasions.

Both have turned games single-handedly from their role in the defensive half – in fact Maxwell’s most recent contribution came in Round 2 against Sydney, collecting 12 intercept disposals and 5 intercept marks on the way to a 20-point Magpies win.

Injuries and depth

Both sides are depleted in one area of the ground – for North it is the midfield, while for Collingwood it is the defence. However, the performance of the so-called ‘backups’ have been extremely impressive and a large part in the good first month for the Roos and Pies.

While Ben Reid has spent time forward, the absence of he and Nathan Brown has lent opportunity to Jack Frost and Lachlan Keeffe. Frost in particular performed well on Lance Franklin in Round 2, while Keeffe is coming into his own after originally being pre-listed by Collingwood all the way back in 2007.

Meanwhile for North, the absence of Andrew Swallow and Jack Ziebell has resulted in the rest of the midfield group raising their game. Levi Greenwood has come into the side and performed well, while Ben Jacobs has turned in two impressive performances as the substitute. Brad McKenzie has continued his development while Ben Cunnington is in the early running for an All-Australian midfield position.

North and Collingwood clearly have many similarities and it should result in a fascinating encounter at the MCG on Saturday.