Melbourne have turned on the jets after a sluggish begin to register a 32-point win over a Kangaroos facet celebrating the comeback of coach Alastair Clarkson.
The high-flying Demons trailed by 33 early within the second quarter to second-bottom North Melbourne earlier than operating out 15.13 (103) to 10.11 (71) victors at Blundstone Arena on Sunday.
But they’ve a nervous wait figuring out the severity of an ankle damage to Harrison Petty, who left the sphere within the third quarter and did not return.
Petty had earlier kicked two targets on the again of a six-goal haul in opposition to Richmond final spherical.
Melbourne’s Kysaiah Pickett supplied a spark, kicking three targets together with a miraculous left-foot effort from the left boundary line, and a fleet-footed snap.
Pickett picked up two objective assists, whereas teammates Alex Neal-Bullen and Kade Chandler additionally slotted three targets.
The win was Melbourne’s fifth in a row and their largest comeback win of the 12 months, with three regular-season fixtures remaining earlier than the finals.
The Demons moved to second on the ladder, however might shift down to 3rd if Brisbane beat Fremantle on Sunday afternoon.
Melbourne placed on seven straight targets both facet of halftime to take the lead after trailing 35-9 on the first break.
It was the 18th defeat in a row for the Kangaroos, the membership’s worst shedding streak since 1935.
North Melbourne’s Eddie Ford kicked a team-high three majors – all within the first quarter – to provide Clarkson one thing to smile about in his four-hundredth recreation as an AFL coach.
It was Clarkson’s first match again in cost after he took an indefinite psychological well being break in May citing the toll of the Hawks racism saga.
The AFL made no hostile findings in opposition to Clarkson, Chris Fagan or Jason Burt over the historic racism allegations.
Retiring Kangaroos veteran Jack Ziebell, who hadn’t featured within the AFL since spherical eight, notched a team-high 32 disposals.
Source: www.perthnow.com.au
