1. Saved by a whistle
The Dogs' one-point win would almost certainly have been a five-point loss if not for a pivotal umpiring decision in the final two minutes. With North Melbourne trailing by one point and coming home like a steam train, Ben Brown marked and ran around to snap a goal. But it was ruled out after Mason Wood had blocked Tom Campbell in the marking contest, resulting in a free kick and then 50m penalty after Brown kicked the goal. The ball had been almost exclusively held in the North Melbourne forward line and the final four goals had gone their way, but that decision was the final hurdle they could not get over. In the final minutes, Shaun Higgins kicked a behind to level the scores and the ball was whisked to the other end where Jake Stringer soaked up the clock and kicked the match-winning point. Season 2017 delivers again.


WATCH: The thrilling last two minutes here

2. Shaun caught snoozing
The set-shot countdown claimed another victim on Saturday night, with Shaun Higgins joining Port Adelaide's Charlie Dixon in an exclusive group of players to let their 30 seconds run down before starting their set shot run-up. Like Dixon in round 10, Higgins was unaware his time had expired as he lined up for what would have been a 40m set shot on the eve of three-quarter time. Bulldog Jake Stringer was lurking in the background, urging the umpire to call play-on and pouncing when he was given the green light. Higgins was crunched and the chance was gone, leaving the Kangaroos fuming. Like Dixon, the onus was on Higgins to start his run-up before the 30 seconds expired and his failure to do so left him vulnerable. A goal would have cut the margin to seven points at a time when the Kangaroos had found some momentum. There is no 30 second countdown clock in the final two minutes of quarters, so Higgins needed to be aware of the umpire’s call. 

3. Johannisen is ready
For the third week running, Norm Smith medallist Jason Johannisen found himself the subject of heavy opposition attention. Like Sydney and Melbourne, North Melbourne pushed the boundaries through Taylor Garner, Nathan Hrovat and Declan Mountford. Former Bulldog Hrovat went straight to Johannisen for the first bounce and set the tone off the ball, while Mountford's constant grappling saw the emergency umpire come onto the ground during the first quarter. Johannisen had three possessions in the first quarter, one of those coming from a kick-in to himself. He worked up to a wing and rotated through half-forward to try and shake the tag and won four possessions in the second term. It took time, but he worked through the attention and finished with 19 after an improved second half. Coach Luke Beveridge said he was happy for the attention to keep coming, with the Bulldogs able to flick their key runner into different roles and rely on others for their rebound. "I thought he went all right … we don't need Jason to get 30 possessions for us to win the game," the coach said. "We'll just take Shane Biggs, or Matty Suckling or Easton Wood up high. We'll get the same result."    

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4. Waite on the wing
Nick Riewoldt has done it at St Kilda and now Jarrad Waite is moving up the ground for North Melbourne to accommodate younger tall forwards. The Kangaroos played Majak Daw alongside Ben Brown and Mason Wood, with Todd Goldstein in the ruck. There was clearly no room for Waite as a permanent tall forward, but his move onto a wing was a winner. Showcasing his full running capacity, Waite worked up and down the wing to win nine possessions and take six marks in the first half. He was also able to push inside 50 at the right times to kick two goals. He kicked on after the main break to finish with 13 possessions, nine marks and three goals, lining up on midfield opponents like Lachie Hunter. Waite was frozen out of the game last week because of poor service, but at least on Saturday night he could make his own luck.     

5. Who is to blame for lopsided count?
North Melbourne coach Brad Scott appeared frustrated in the box as he watched a number of decisions go against his team in the first half. Some were 50-50 calls, while others the Kangaroos could consider themselves very unlucky to be on the wrong side of. Still, there was a good reason for the lopsided 16-4 count at half time in the Bulldogs' favour and it had everything to do with intent. The Bulldogs were winning the contested ball (67-56) and holding on to it with a short-kick game (65-35). To put it bluntly, they were the ones making the play and the Kangaroos were always a step behind in the first half. You don't get the rub of the green when you're second to the ball, and free kicks were 5-5 in the final term when contested ball was virtually squared at 41-43.