SUMMARY
North Melbourne is making believers of everyone. The Roos added to their comeback story in the west last week, taking down Fremantle by 28 points to move into fifth place on the ladder. They have a tough, suddenly deep midfield, the AFL's leading goalkicker in Ben Brown, and have conceded the fewest points of any team. Next up is a Lions side that has proven competitive most weeks, but has only one win from 10 to show for it. Making life even more difficult for Brisbane is that it has lost six of its past seven matches at Etihad Stadium. Star midfielders Dayne Zorko and Dayne Beams will have to fire again, while the battle between Harris Andrews – fresh from breaking the League's single-game spoils record – and Brown will be a fascinating one. Tom Cutler has brilliantly fed the Lions inside 50 this year, and needs to maintain that form against a stingy North backline.
WHERE AND WHEN: Etihad Stadium, Sunday, June 3, 1.10pm (AEST)
TV AND RADIO: Click here for broadcast guide
LAST FIVE MEETINGS
R23, 2017: North Melbourne 19.16 (130) d Brisbane Lions 11.13 (79) at the Gabba
R2, 2016: North Melbourne 17.15 (117) d Brisbane Lions 11.17 (83) at the Gabba
R17, 2015: North Melbourne 16.14 (110) d Brisbane Lions 5.8 (38) at the Gabba
R2, 2015: North Melbourne 20.13 (133) d Brisbane Lions 7.9 (51) at Etihad Stadium
R15, 2014: Brisbane Lions 10.10 (70) d North Melbourne 9.12 (66) at the Gabba
THE SIX POINTS
1. Ben Brown starred when the sides last played, booting a career-high seven goals at the Gabba. North Melbourne led by four points at half-time before kicking 14 second-half goals to six.
2. The Kangaroos continue to be the best defensive team in 2018, conceding an average of only 69 points per game. They've given up 100 points in a match just once so far (to Melbourne in round three).
3. North has dominated Brisbane recently, winning the last four clashes and seven of nine since 2012. Five of those seven victories were by more than 50 points.
4. Not in the Lions' favour is their starts to games: they're yet to win an opening quarter and are minus-136 points. The fourth term is Brisbane's best, winning six and boasting a plus-18 points differential.
5. A possible advantage for the Lions could be in centre clearances, where they rank eighth with an average of 12.7 per game, while the Roos are last with an average of 9.4.
6. North's Shaun Higgins and Brisbane's Dayne Beams are among the steepest risers in the Schick AFL Player Ratings in the past month. Higgins climbed from 136 to 90 (+34 per cent) in that period, while Beams vaulted 45 places to 166 (+21 per cent).
IT'S A BIG WEEK FOR …
Brisbane's No.1 key forward Eric Hipwood doesn't turn 21 until September, and is the Lions' third-highest goalkicker this season with 14. If that's not already a big ask, Hipwood comes up on Sunday against the League's stingiest defence, led by Kangaroos veterans Robbie Tarrant and Scott Thompson.
PREDICTION: North Melbourne by 21 points.
