Sunday September 9, 2007. North Melbourne dejectedly trudges off the MCG having just lost to Geelong by 106 points in the Qualifying Final.
Held to just seven touches by Cameron Ling, Brent Harvey was just one of eight North players to collect single-figure disposals. After the heavy loss, North prepared to face Hawthorn the following Saturday night at the MCG in a cut-throat Semi-Final.
The Hawks, having defeated Adelaide in a classic Elimination Final, were heavily favoured to defeat the Kangaroos and advance to a Preliminary Final showdown with Port Adelaide.
Almost 75,000 people flocked to the home of football in perfect conditions to watch the game and it was soon apparent that North had no interest in playing to the script. Despite having to deal with what was termed as 'unsociable football' from the Hawks, Dean Laidley's team jumped out to an early lead, booting three of the first four goals.
During that run came one of the best marks in recent memory as Aaron Edwards soared high above the shoulders of Drew Petrie and Trent Croad to send the strong North Melbourne contingent in the stands into rapture.
The contested efforts of the North midfield were a feature, with the likes of Daniel Wells, Brady Rawlings and Adam Simpson and a player in just his 24th game, Jesse Smith first to the football time and time again.
As the game wore on, it was apparent the superior effort was beginning to frustrate the favourites and it all came to a head late in the third quarter when Daniel Harris was on the receiving end of a late hit from Shane Crawford.
Yet for all the momentum North Melbourne possessed, when Lance Franklin soccered through the first goal of the final term the margin stood at just 11 points.
Enter Brent Harvey. With three goals in the last quarter, Harvey shook off the physical tag he had to deal with all night and ended Hawthorn's season with a stunning burst of football. North had defied the critics once again and progressed to a Preliminary Final for the first time since 2000.
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North Melbourne 3.3.21, 5.5.35, 9.7.61, 14.9.93
Hawthorn 2.1.13, 4.3.27, 6.8.44, 8.12.60
Goals
North Melbourne: Edwards (4), Harvey (4), Grant (1), McIntosh (1), McMahon (1), Petrie (1), Swallow (1), Wells (1)
Hawthorn: Franklin (3), Bateman (1), Boyle (1), Guerra (1), Lewis (1), Roughead (1)
