SUMMARY
These two teams are coming off vastly different round one experiences. The Cats travelled to Perth to beat Fremantle by 42 points while the Kangaroos hosted West Coast and fell 43 points short. The Cats' backline shone against the Dockers with Andrew Mackie and Lachie Henderson impressive, while Patrick Dangerfield and Mitch Duncan were important in the middle. The Roos were led by Jack Ziebell and Andrew Swallow, but let down by inaccurate kicking for goal from Jarrad Waite (now out with a shoulder injury) and Lindsay Thomas. Both teams played on Sunday so neither team has a break advantage, but the Cats had to return home from Perth after their victory so essentially go in with one less day of preparation.
WHERE AND WHEN: Etihad Stadium, Sunday, April 2, 1.10pm AEST
TV AND RADIO: Click here for broadcast guide
LAST FIVE TIMES
R12, 2016, Geelong Cats 15.15 (105) d North Melbourne 12.2 (74) at Etihad Stadium
R15, 2015, North Melbourne 18.12 (120) d Geelong Cats 11.13 (79) at Etihad Stadium
R4, 2015, North Melbourne 12.11 (83) d Geelong Cats 9.13 (67) at Simonds Stadium
2SF, 2014, North Melbourne 14.14 (98) d Geelong Cats 13.14 (92) at the MCG
R19, 2014, Geelong Cats 16.15 (111) d North Melbourne 10.19 (79) at Etihad Stadium
THE SIX POINTS
1. Can Dangerfield be the difference again? Last time these sides met, the Brownlow Medallist kicked two goals, won 13 clearances, took 13 marks and collected a whopping 48 disposals.
2. The Roos will want to work on their accuracy in front of goal this week. On Sunday against West Coast, they sprayed a number of gettable shots to end with a 13.15 score line.
3. They were also smashed in disposals (341-414) and marks (54-115) by the Eagles. They won the clearances and centre clearances, which Todd Goldstein's dominance in the ruck contributed to.
4. In comparison, the Cats were belted in the ruck last week after the late withdrawal of Zac Smith. They lost the hit-outs 18-63 against Aaron Sandilands and co., and were also beaten in centre clearances 12-17.
5. There's little advantage of playing at Etihad Stadium, it seems, for these sides head-to-head. They've played at Docklands 12 times for six wins each. The Scott brothers first coached against each other there in 2011 for three wins apiece.
6. One round in and Dangerfield is already holding court atop the Official AFL Player Ratings, brought to you by Schick. The former Crow is on 733.1 points after earning 26.7 points in the win over Fremantle. He is 92.5 points above second-placed Swan Josh Kennedy.
IT’S A BIG WEEK FOR … Lindsay Thomas.
Waite was the main offender in terms of goal-kicking accuracy on Sunday, but Thomas sprayed three shots as well; one of which sailed completely out of bounds. With Waite out, Thomas will need to find a way to contribute more than he did in round one.
PREDICTION: Geelong by 25 points.
