Richmond VFL went down by in excess of 10 goals, outplayed by North Melbourne after a tight first term. 

Matt Whitlock kicked the first goal of the game for the Roos, executing a nice set shot kick from 50, before Tigers small forward Rhyan Mansell signalled his return, kicking a classy snap. Both teams traded goals with Caleb Nancarrow’s first VFL major keeping scores tight, before the Tigers dominated time in the forward half for the rest of the quarter. 

Richmond struggled to capitalise in front of goal, only taking a two-point lead into quarter time before an early goal in the second quarter from Brayden George gave North Melbourne the lead back.

Mohammed Yassine kept the Tigers right in the hunt, kicking truly from 40 metres out after being awarded a free kick. However, a few goals for the Roos in the middle of the term gave them some breathing room. North Melbourne were cleaner and played some clinical footy for the rest of the quarter, opening up a four-goal lead at half-time.

Mid-season recruit Ollie Griffin maintained the Roos' momentum, extending their lead after the main break, and when Banch kicked his third of the day, the lead was out to 38 points. Mansell was the one to finally break a run of six straight North Melbourne goals, kicking his third of the day, but the Roos answered back almost immediately.

The Tigers threw a few punches, but the Roos ultimately held their lead, taking a strong 40-point advantage into the last term. Facing a big deficit, Yassine gave Richmond a hot start in the last term as he slotted a goal less than a minute in, but Lachy Dovaston stretched the lead back out to seven goals.

North Melbourne finished the game in a flurry, kicking seven last-quarter goals to win by 63 points, with the Tigers expecting to put together a much better performance next Saturday afternoon against Collingwood at Victoria Park.

There were still a few positives for the Tigers with Kaleb Smith keeping his great form going, finishing the game with 31 disposals. While Rhyan Mansell got through the game on managed minutes and kicked three goals on return from a long-term injury.  

Richmond 2.5 3.7 5.8 8.10 (59)

North Melbourne 2.3 7.8 11.12 18.14 (122)

Goalkickers: Mansell 3, Yassine 2, Peucker, Nancarrow and Burton.