NORTH Melbourne has bounced back from its heavy loss to Essendon last week to record a comfortable 41-point win over Richmond at the MCG.
Forward Corey Jones led the way with seven goals as North outscored the Tigers by four goals in both the first and third quarters, resisting a late Tiger fightback to win 20.7 (127) to 13.8 (86).
Richmond’s disappointment was compounded by a knee injury to defender Andrew Raines. Raines left the ground immediately after a tackle midway through the third quarter, with early reports suggesting a dislocated left kneecap.
The Kangaroos have their own worries, with Aaron Edwards reported in the second term for a midair charge on Raines.
Playmaker Daniel Wells typified a Roos side determined not to let its opening defeat set the tone for the season.
Wells, who attracted pointed criticism after a dismal day against the Bombers, laid four tackles and had 24 touches in a solid return to form.
The Roos won all the key battles.
Leigh Harding took dangerous Richmond forward Kayne Pettifer out of the game. Pettifer kicked three goals when these two sides met in round 14 last year, but was restricted to only one behind.
Brady Rawlings shadowed Tiger Nathan Foley all day, limiting him to just 15 touches.
In attack, Jones saw off Raines, Jake King and Kelvin Moore before half time, and Grant embarrassed King further while kicking three in the second term.
When Dean Polo went to Grant in the third and Moore stayed opposite Jones, Lindsay Thomas and Matt Campbell popped up to boot three goals between them.
Jones booted 7.2, while Grant had 21 touches and snared four straight goals, and Harris picked up 22 possessions.
Richmond, led by Chris Newman (24 possessions) in the absence of the self-suspended Kane Johnson, played in patches. While they trailed miserably in both the clearance count (39 to 20) and inside 50s (55 to 45), they managed to push through periodically to ensure the match did not become a complete blow-out.
North was never headed in a scrappy opening, with players scuffling after several body clashes. The Roos piled on five of the last six goals of the first quarter for a 27-point lead at quarter time.
That was the exact lead North Melbourne surrendered against Essendon last week, and a goal immediately after the restart to Shane Tuck gave Richmond hope of staging a similar turnaround.
The Roos hit back twice through Grant, but direct attacking helped Richmond keep in touch, and Matthew Richardson could have cut the gap to 19 points if he hadn’t sprayed a kick from 30m in the last minute of the half.
Jones and Shannon Grant had four goals apiece at half time, with Tiger defender Jake King standing both men during the half. But King made amends with a hard-running second half, including a rare goal of his own late in the third term.
This match was rebadged the first ‘Eureka’ game – intended to recognise the role of Australian workers – so the Roos’ gritty display after half time was appropriate.
A seven-goal-to-three quarter ended with Edwards nailing the final major of the term for a 46-point lead with a quarter to go.
Richmond kicked the first three goals of the last stanza via Jay Schulz, Chris Hyde and Cleve Hughes, which reduced the deficit to 28 points and made proceedings a little more interesting as the match lit up under the MCG lights.
But a long soccer goal from Campbell at the 16-minute mark, followed by Jones's seventh six minutes later, ended the Tigers’ comeback.
North Melbourne will now face the unbeaten Hawks at Telstra Dome next Saturday, while Richmond will host Collingwood at the MCG on Sunday in the AFL's themed Rivalry Round.
Richmond 3.1 7.4 10.7 13.8 (86)
North Melbourne 7.4 11.4 18.5 20.7 (127)
GOALS
Richmond: Schulz 3, Richardson 2, Simmonds, Foley, Tuck, Deledio, Brown, King, Hyde, Hughes
North Melbourne: Jones 7, Grant 4, Campbell 3, Thompson 2, Edwards 2, Simpson, Thomas
BEST
Richmond: Newman, Schulz, Bowden, Deledio
North Melbourne: Jones, Harding, Grant, Rawlings, Harris, Pratt, Power
INJURIES
Richmond: Raines (knee)
North Melbourne: Nil
Reports: Edwards (North Melbourne) reported for charging Raines (Richmond) by umpire Fila in the second quarter
Umpires: Schmitt, Fila, Wenn
Official crowd: 39,292 at MCG
The views in this story are those of the author and not necessarily those of the clubs or the AFL.
