Paul Curtis took a Mark of the Year contender as North Melbourne took down the Western Bulldogs in a Thursday night thriller at Marvel Stadium.

BULLDOGS v KANGAROOS Full match coverage and stats

The Kangaroos kept alive their slim hopes of playing finals in winning by 23 points, 15.10 (100) to 11.11 (77).

As the Roos made a rare appearance in Thursday night primetime, Curtis stepped up as the star of the show.

He set up the win with an exhilarating first quarter - the fourth-highest rated quarter of his career. It included the opening two goals and a sensational first-quarter hanger, perched on the shoulders of Bulldog defender Michael Sellwood.

He finished with a game-high four goals from 19 possessions.

The Kangaroos led by 28 points midway through the third quarter but the Bulldogs surged back, closing within a kick in the early stages of the last term.

But the Roos were able to turn the tide once again when it mattered, kicking the game's final three goals.

Alongside Curtis's heroics, they were led by an immense performance by star midfielder Luke Davies-Uniacke, who kicked two goals and won 31 disposals, 10 clearances and 10 tackles.

He was well supported by senior stars Harry Sheezel (29 disposals, six tackles) and Luke Parker (26 disposals), while George Wardlaw showed what he brings to the side with 19 disposals and four bone-crunching tackles from only 57 per cent gametime.

Despite enjoying its best season in seven years, North Melbourne was yet to beat an opponent above it on the ladder before facing the eighth-placed Bulldogs.

And the Roos had to do it the hard way, playing with a man down for the entire second half after defender Aidan Corr suffered issues with his back and was ruled out for the rest of the night.

Their ninth win of the season, and their first over the Bulldogs since 2019, keeps the club's finals hopes mathematically alive with two games of the home-and-away season remaining. 

Roo hauls in huge Mark of the Year Contender

Paul Curtis was already having a field day in the first quarter with two early goals but it was this massive leap that lifted the roof off Marvel Stadium. The Roos livewire launched over the top of Bulldogs defender Michael Sellwood to take an absolute screamer, putting him well in contention for this year's Virgin Australia Mark of the Year.

Welcome back, George

To say North Melbourne has missed the grunt of George Wardlaw would be an understatement. The inside bull has missed the past month with a hamstring strain but his return on Thursday night brought smiles to all Roos supporters. The 22-year-old was on managed minutes but still made a massive impact on the contest, finishing with 19 disposals and a goal. But it was his crunching tackle on Ed Richards that typified his endeavour and defensive qualities, prompting Channel 7's commentary team to call it 'one of the tackles of the year'.

WESTERN BULLDOGS   2.3   5.6     10.9    11.11 (77)
NORTH MELBOURNE    6.0    10.2   12.7   15.10 (100)  

GOALS
Western Bulldogs: Kennedy 2, Naughton 2, Bontempelli, Davidson, Freijah, Hynes, Khamis, Liberatore, Richards
North Melbourne: Curtis 4, Banch 2, Darling 2, Davies-Uniacke 2, Parker, Simpkin, Spargo, Wardlaw, Xerri

BEST
Western Bulldogs: Richards, Bontempelli, West, Freijah, Bramble
North Melbourne: Davies-Uniacke, Curtis, Sheezel, Parker, Daniel, Zurhaar, Wardlaw
 
INJURIES
Western Bulldogs: English (knee)
North Melbourne: Corr (back)

Crowd: 25,052 at Marvel Stadium