NORTH MELBOURNE 5.4 7.9 13.13 18.16 (124)
RICHMOND 1.5 3.8 4.10 7.12 (54)
Goals: North Melbourne: B Harvey 4 D Wells 3 L Thomas 2 M Wood 2 B Brown B Cunnington D Petrie J MacMillan M Daw N Dal Santo S Atley. Richmond: J Riewoldt 2 T Vickery 2 A Miles B Deledio S Lloyd.
Best: North Melbourne: D Wells B Cunnington D Petrie N Dal Santo B Harvey A Swallow. Richmond: T Cotchin A Miles S Hampson S Grigg.
Umpires: Robert Findlay, Ray Chamberlain, Brendan Hosking.
Official Crowd: 17,844 at Blundstone Arena.
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This was a worst-case scenario for Richmond – a thrashing that left at least three players with serious injury concerns and hopes of playing finals football looking remote.
After losing their first match this season to Sydney, it was a return to business-as-usual for ladder leaders North Melbourne, who cleaned up the Tigers by 70 points in Hobart on Friday night.
The Kangas had concerns before the game, with Majak Daw replacing star ruckman Todd Goldstein (knee) in the selected team and coach Brad Scott having to stay in Melbourne because of a virus.
Roo Sam Wright joined a host of Tigers on the injury list when he slipped in the final term and had to be helped off the ground.
But Daw stood up well in just his 18th senior game, while Richmond were dealt blow after injury blow.
Just two minutes before the starting siren defender Dylan Grimes withdrew with a hamstring injury, leaving Troy Chaplin scrambling to change and warm-up in the rooms on his own.
He was needed – minutes into the game brave small Steven Morris went into a marking contest and landed awkwardly, with Richmond staff carrying him off on a stretcher with a suspected knee injury.
Nick Vlastuin was forced off with concussion and to add to the Tiger misery, Ben Griffiths was carted away in the third quarter with what appeared to be ankle injury.
The Roos looked dangerous from the first bounce – Daniel Wells, Shaun Atley and Brent Harvey kicked quick goals before Jack Riewoldt managed the Tigers' first, their only major score for the quarter.
Whether it was the cold Hobart night or the injuries, Richmond seemed in shock, too often allowing their opponents to find room where they should have been applying pressure and coach Damien Hardwick appeared to be letting them have it at quarter-time.
They played with more intensity in the second, boosted by a timely goal from Sam Lloyd, then another from Brett Deledio.
But any momentum they could muster was stifled by skill errors, particularly poor kicking, which meant they struggled to string possessions together.
Evergreen Kangaroo Brent Harvey, still uncannily quick and crafty at 38, kicked goal number 500 for his career in the final quarter, then minutes later strolled into the goal square unchallenged for 501.
