NORTH MELBOURNE 3.2 6.8 13.10 16.13 (109) RICHMOND 2.1 5.8 6.11 10.14 (74)
GOALS - NM: Thomas 5, Higgins 3, Harvey, Nahas 2, Brown, Petrie, Waite, Wright. Richmond: Riewoldt 3, Martin, Edwards, Morris, Maric, Miles, Chaplin.
BEST - North Melbourne:: Goldstein, Higgins, Cunnington, Thomas, Petrie, Ziebell, Harvey, Jacobs. Richmond: Martin, Miles, Edwards, Grimes, Riewoldt.
INJURIES - North Melbourne: Macmillan (Achilles, replaced in selected side by Jacobs). Richmond: Griffiths (concussion), Newman (hip).
SUBSTITUTE - North Melbourne: Bastinac (replaced Hansen in Q4). Richmond: Gordon (replaced Griffiths in Q2).
UMPIRES - Foot, Meredith, Mollison.
CROWD - 16,131 at Blundstone Arena

It is a good thing Tasmania is already a rusted-on football state, otherwise any uncommitted fans testing the waters at the North Melbourne-Richmond match would, at least until half-time, been committed to finding another pastime.

From what followed in the third quarter even rusted-on Tigers would have been considering a similar course of action, such was the way their team turned a tight tussle into a nonchalant 35-point victory for the Kangaroos.

Only 11 goals were scored in the first half in front of a crowd of 16,131 at Blundstone Arena, despite the dry conditions. The first 11 minutes of the third quarter kept to that script, with only a goal each. The second of those, to local boy Jack Riewoldt, cut the Tigers' deficit to four points.

On paper it was inconceivable that just 20 minutes later they went to the three-quarter-time huddle with a deficit of 44 points. Watching it live it was not much better, for even neutrals would have been tearing their hair out at the Tigers' repeated skill errors which led to turnovers which almost invariably led to goals for North.

Even players the calibre of Brett Deledio were culpable as the Kangaroos notched six consecutive goals.

While the Tigers boasted the stand-out players of the first half, Dustin Martin and Shane Edwards, in ruckman Todd Goldstein and forward flanker Shaun Higgins the Kangaroos boasted two players who were influential for the entire match, in addition to a more even spread of contributors.

Harvey ran riot on his preceding visit to Blundstone Arena, against St Kilda in round 17 last year, and threatened to do the same against Richmond after snaring three disposals, including a goal, in the first four minutes of the match. The player shifted on to him in response, Chris Newman, deserved credit not only for quelling Harvey but also for his tenacity in improbably running down the Kangaroos' Robin Nahas as he streamed forward to win a free-kick.

Richmond ruckman Ivan Maric's squandered kick from 10 metres out early in the first quarter set the tone for what was a largely awful display of set-shot kicking in the first half. The Tigers never achieved anything better than scoreboard parity in the first half, although that was partly influenced by their inaccuracy.

Given the dry conditions the poor skills were inexplicable. The worst of it came mid-way through the second quarter where in the space of a minute there were three conspicuous blunders: Mason Wood missing on the run into goal for North, Martin turning the ball over in the back pocket and then the Kangaroos' Jarrad Waite missing the resulting set-shot from 20 metres on only a slight angle.

Had it not been for two fine contested marks by Richmond small men, Edwards and Steve Morris, that each converted to goals there would literally have been nothing at all to savour from either side about the second quarter.

North begin to add some polish to their game in the third quarter. The first signs of this were long-range set shots from Lindsay Thomas, hitherto barely sighted, and Drew Petrie, hitherto only influential when pushing up into the back half, split the goalposts. As the Kangaroos went on their five-goal streak to finish the quarter it was fitting that both Goldstein and Higgins were involved: Goldstein twice making pivotal interceptions in the centre, former Bulldog Higgins as one of the goalscorers after Edwards carelessly conceded a 50-metre penalty.

Scoring the first two goals of the final quarter, through the hard-working Anthony Miles and Riewoldt, raised the possibility the Tigers could add a degree of respectability to the scoreline. That possibility disappeared when the Kangaroos kicked the next three goals.

Even though Lindsay Thomas kicked five for the match, it was only his final goal, from about 40 metres hard on the boundary, that was particularly noteworthy.

The late high pack mark from key-defender Troy Chaplin, and his resulting goal, was one of the few things Tigers fans had to savour about the second half.

For Kangaroos fans, even though their team did not bury the Tigers on the scoreboard in the final quarter, they should be comforted to have achieved such a decisive win while barely breaking a sweat.