North Melbourne's flagship fixture of the 2022 home and away campaign is upon us. The Kangaroos are once again taking on the Western Bulldogs in the new-look Good Friday SuperClash.

Both teams enter the SuperClash with one win from the first four games of the season. A victory for the Bulldogs could help them jumpstart their faltering season, while a win for North would be the perfect example of how far this side has come since this time last year.

The Kangaroos will be hoping for a packed Marvel Stadium crowd to spur them onto victory. Make sure you're prepared for the match with this week's gameday guide.

Set your matchday reminders

Friday, April 15
North Melbourne v Western Bulldogs at Marvel Stadium, 4.20pm AEST

You can click here to sync the AFL fixture to your calendar.

Get your ticket to Marvel Stadium

A big home crowd is needed this week. Get behind your Kangaroos in their biggest home and away clash of the year. We want to hear our fans loud and proud.

>> Get your tickets to the game here 

Grab your SuperClash bandana and support an amazing cause

SuperClash bandanas are on sale now at just $10 from the Roo Shop, with all proceeds donated to the Royal Children's Hospital's Good Friday Appeal.

>> Purchase your bandana HERE

Be part of history as we target 50k members in 2022

The Kangaroos' journey continues in 2022, and we're targeting a club record 50,000 members as David Noble's young team continues to build towards future success.

Joining up as a member is a great way to support not only the AFL team, but the entire football club. 

Watch on TV or stream on your device

The game will be broadcast live on Channel 7, as well as on Foxtel and Kayo Sports.

Stay connected on social media

For behind-the-scenes access and all the best highlights, photos, stats and stories, we’ve got you covered.

Follow the @NMFCOfficial accounts on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook to stay up to date with everything happening at the match.

Bring on the big game! 

For the Kangaroos, this weekend is the biggest clash of the home and away season. There's absolutely no doubting that.

After campaigning for Good Friday football for three decades, North Melbourne is cementing itself as a constant presence in the holiday fixture, and the Kangaroos will once again take on the Western Bulldogs.

A much improved showing against the Swans has North fans hopeful for another strong performance, while the Bulldogs are hoping to kickstart their campaign.

Here are four of the most pressing questions ahead of the Good Friday SuperClash with the Bulldogs.

How to win without Zurhaar?

Since his debut in 2017, Cam Zurhaar's game has evolved to the point where, on his day, he's one of the most important members of the Kangaroos' forward structure.

It's been in the past two seasons where he's taken his game to the next level, finishing as North's leading goalkicker in 2020 before following up with 31 goals in 2021. In those two seasons where he's cemented his place he's missed just three games. All have been losses. 

Zurhaar may have started the season slowly so far, but his performance against Sydney indicated a return to the best of 'The Bull'. There's no doubting he thrived off of the contest provided against the Swans, but he will miss the Good Friday SuperClash due to a concussion sustained in Round 4.

There are a number of options battling to be named in the forward line with one of Eddie Ford and Charlie Comben the most likely to come into the side, and Jack Ziebell's performance last week will take some pressure off the club's other mid-sized forwards.

If the Kangaroos are to emerge from the Good Friday SuperClash victorious then they'll have to do something they've not managed since Round 23, 2018. Win without Cam Zurhaar.

How much can be raised for the Good Friday Appeal?

On Good Friday, the football takes a back seat.

The hallmark of this fixture is the work North Melbourne and the Western Bulldogs do to help raise funds for the Good Friday Appeal and the Royal Children's Hospital.

If there's one game Kangaroos game you go to this season, let it be this one. Get down to Marvel Stadium on Friday afternoon and support not only your North Melbourne Kangaroos, but one of the most important days on the footballing calendar.

Can last week's intensity become habit?

Despite the fact it resulted in a narrow loss, fans were pleased with the intent shown by the Kangaroos in last week's clash against Sydney.

The Swans have made the SCG a fortress in recent months and have won nine of their last 11 games at the venue. For North to be in a position to win the game so soon after such a disappointing showing the week before is testament to the drive of the playing group.

It was the tackling pressure and sheer intensity of the Kangaroos that made them run so close with the Swans. After registering just 40 tackles as a team against Brisbane in Round 3, they finished the Swans clash with 66. A marked improvement.

For a club that's often defined itself by its underdog status and willingness to muck in and excel at the gritty side of the game, the Brisbane performance bordered on unacceptable. What was shown against the Swans cannot be the exception to the rule for this Kangaroos group. 

They've now proven they can take it up to some of the best with their intensity, now its time to bring that week in, week out.

How to stop the Bulldogs' midfield?

It's been said many times that to build a good side you have to start with the midfield.

That's certainly what the Western Bulldogs have done. As their midfield has progressed, so have the team's fortunes. After appearing in last season's Grand Final it's a fair statement to say the Bulldogs have one of the best midfields in the competition.

Led by the mercurial Marcus Bontempelli, the likes of Bailey Smith, Tom Liberatore, Adam Treloar, Jack Macrae and Josh Dunkley make up an unbelievably well-rounded midfield group that can provide inside grit, outside run, classy ball movement and goals galore. They're a serious threat to whoever takes them on.

With their 1-3 start to the season, the Bulldogs have begun this campaign more slowly than they might have liked, but the Kangaroos have to be wary of the power they contain in the middle of the ground.

Match-ups in the middle will be key. Bailey Scott, Luke McDonald and Kayne Turner have all shown the ability to complete a run-with role if required, while the man-marking aspect of 99-gamer Jy Simpkin is one of the most rapidly improving parts of his game.

David Noble has said previously that he'll back his team's defence to stop any opposition player that might break the leash as opposed to turning to a traditional tagger.

That team defence will need to be in tip-top shape if the Kangaroos are going to win the battle in the middle of the ground.

The North Melbourne Kangaroos have gone down to the Western Bulldogs by 68 points in the annual Good Friday SuperClash at Marvel Stadium. 

The signs were ominous early for North. It almost made the perfect start when Jy Simpkin burst out of the middle and pinpointed Jack Ziebell on a searing lead straight up the middle, but the ball bounced off the skipper's chest and outside 50. The Western Bulldogs went coast-to-coast and Cody Weightman snapped a clever goal at the end of the ground. A two-goal turnaround that summed up the day.

It took until the 22nd minute mark of the opening quarter for North Melbourne to score for the first time, through Jaidyn Stephenson who took the advantage from a free kick to stroll into an open goal. But there was no momentum swing. The Dogs had eight goals to one on the board at the first break.

David Noble needed a response after quarter-time. And he got one. The Western Bulldogs kicked the first goal of the second quarter, but then the momentum completely swung. 

Tristan Xerri got the ball rolling, Ziebell kicked the next, Eddie Ford goalled and then Curtis Taylor added two of his own to make it five consecutive North Melbourne goals in a dominant 16-minute burst that resurrected the day. 

But it was only short lived. The Dogs ripped the momentum back at the start of the second half, kicking the first three goals to grab some breathing room. 

And from there, the Western Bulldogs were never troubled, building confidence across the ground ahead of an enticing month against Adelaide, Essendon, Port Adelaide and Collingwood.

Hyphenated Roos the big positive

At half-time of North Melbourne's round four clash at the SCG, Jason Horne-Francis had the Rising Star nomination in his keeping. Josh Rachele claimed it on Monday night, but the No.1 pick produced another performance that shows why there is so much excitement around the South Australian. And he wasn’t the only top pick to perform at Marvel Stadium. Luke Davies-Uniacke made a slow start but was pivotal in dragging the momentum back in the second quarter, before finishing with 22 disposals and 10 contested possessions. 

A day that's bigger than footy

For the fifth year running, the match raised funds for the Good Friday Appeal with $5 from each adult ticket sold going towards the Appeal’s mission of upgrading equipment, training staff and funding medical research to improve care at The Royal Children’s Hospital. With plenty of family friendly entertainment happening on-field before and during breaks of the match, members and fans were all able to help raise much-needed funds for an amazing cause.

Kangaroos' purple patch

Five goals in 16 minutes showed what the Roos are capable of when on song. The match looked over after the Dogs started with an eight-goals-to-one first term, but the purple patch in the second quarter had the Kangaroos fans on their feet. The string of goals to Tristan Xerri, Jack Ziebell, the returning Eddie Ford and two from Curtis Taylor left the 2021 Grand Finalists stunned and should give the Roos plenty of confidence. Now they just need to do it over four quarters.

NORTH MELBOURNE       1.0     6.2     8.4     11.5     (71)
WESTERN BULLDOGS     8.3     10.4     15.8     21.13     (139)

GOALS  
North Melbourne: Larkey 4, Taylor 2, Ford, Powell, Stephenson, Xerri, Ziebell
Western Bulldogs: Naughton 5, Weightman 5, Bontempelli 3, Scott 2, Cordy, English, Hunter, Macrae, Ugle-Hagan, Wallis

BEST   
North Melbourne: Simpkin, Davies-Uniacke, Xerri, Horne-Francis, Scott
Western Bulldogs: Smith, Naughton, Macrae, Dale, Liberatore, Duryea, Treloar, Weightman

INJURIES  
North Melbourne: Hall (hamstring), Mahony (ankle)
Western Bulldogs: Garcia (knee)

SUBSTITUTES  
North Melbourne: Powell replaced Hall at half-time
Western Bulldogs: Wallis replaced Garcia at half-time