North Melbourne has made seven changes to its VFL side ahead of the Round 3 clash against Brisbane at Arden Street Oval.

The AFL-listed trio of Toby Pink, Jaidyn Stephenson, and Curtis Taylor come into the team that trumped the Blues on Good Friday.

It will be Pink and Stephenson's first game in the reserves this season, while Taylor is set to return from a back complaint that kept him out of Round 2.

Midfielders Kade De La Rue and Nick Hodgson have been named to make their season debuts, as have veteran defender Jarrod Lienert and key forward Lachlan Wynd.

Making way are Bigoa Nyuon, Tyler Sellers, Charlie Comben, Blake Drury, and Hugh Greenwood who are all a part of the AFL squad for Sunday's game with the Cats, while Ben Davis and Louis Butler will also miss the VFL clash.

Ben Bath, Jamie Hope, Tom Cappellari, and Hamish Murphy have been selected as emergencies.

The Roo Shop will be open at Arden St Oval on Sunday between 12pm and 4pm.

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Round 3

Sunday, April 14
North Melbourne vs Brisbane at Arden St Oval, 1.05pm AEST

North Melbourne’s VFL side has secured its third win of the season, winning 12.4 (76) to 9.21 (75) over the Brisbane Lions to remain undefeated in 2024.

In dramatic fashion, Sam Lowson secured the win by booting his fourth goal of the game to give the Roos a one-point lead in the 28th minute of the final quarter.

Most of the key statistical metrics were in the Lions favour when the final siren went, but the visitors failed to execute kicking 21 behinds for the game, leaving the door ajar for a gutsy Kangaroos outfit.

"An unbelievable win, to be able to come from behind again late in the last quarter, (I'm) super excited and pleased for the players to experience that," VFL coach Tom Lynch told NMFC Media.

"The leaders were the ones who stood up.

"We had some great contributors and (for) the kids to experience some of those moments was great."

Brisbane got off to a hot start and quickly asserted themselves at the contest, but it was the Roos who took their opportunities early with Jaidyn Stephenson kicking the first goal of the game from North Melbourne's initial inside 50.

Connor Downie (17 disposals, five marks) was switched on and found space to sneak home the Kangas' second, before he found Charlie Harrop moments later who also converted to put his team up.

The Lions dominated the inside-50 count 19-6 and clearances 14-4 in the first term, but their inaccuracy in front of goal helped keep the Roos in the game, with the home side going into the first break only down by eight points.

KANGAROOS v LIONS Full match coverage and stats

Despite having only six disposals by the end of the clash, young back Jackson Archer was a strong influence behind the ball and was rarely beaten in his one-on-one battles.

"He (Archer) was fantastic," Lynch said.

"Again, we put our backs under enormous pressure and Arch was fantastic in his ability to defend and be ruthless down there.

"And having Jarrod Lienert down there was important to help those young defenders play the way they did."

Lowson kicked two of his four goals in the second quarter, and captain Jack Watkins (25 disposals, seven tackles) also got in on the action, curling home a major off the back of a Stephenson assist.

It was Stephenson again who popped up late in the second term, sending one through from distance to give the Roos an eight-point half-time advantage.

"I thought his (Stephenson) attitude was first class," he said.

"He was a really strong contributor for us today and was a big reason as to why we got the result we did, so I'm super pleased for him."

The third quarter was a low-scoring affair as the ball pinged back and forth with each club only managing to goal on one occasion.

Midfielder Will Phillips was strong on the inside, racking up 21 touches and a game-high 13 tackles, while Curtis Taylor was another AFL-listed Roo that got to work, finishing with two important goals and 17 possessions.

Riley Hardeman (18 disposals, five rebounds 50s) and Brayden George (21, three) also excited when rebounding off half-back, getting involved in several slick passages from defensive 50.

In a roller coaster fourth quarter, Lowson and Lachlan Wynd gave North Melbourne a handy lead but Brisbane kept fighting back, and would eventually jump into the driver's seat following what was nearly a game-winner from Brandon Ryan.

Five points down, Watkins and Nick Hodgson cracked in at the next centre bounce to win a free kick for holding the ball, and the former found Lowson seconds later who was able to finish the job.

NORTH MELBOURNE     4.0    8.2    9.3    12.4  (76)     
BRISBANE LIONS      4.8    5.12    6.16    9.21  (75)     

GOALS
North Melbourne: Lowson 4, Taylor 2, Stephenson 2, Wynd, Watkins, Harrop, Downie
Brisbane Lions: Ryan 3, Tunstill, Smith, Sharp, Robertson, Lane, Dunkley

BEST  
North Melbourne: Watkins, Lowson, Phillips, Stephenson, Downie, Lord