The return of Jy Simpkin and Hugh Greenwood will not stop North Melbourne exposing their rising midfielders in opposition to the Western Bulldogs’ battle-hardened on-ball division.
Co-captain Simpkin and difficult nut Greenwood are each again after every week beneath concussion protocols to bolster a Kangaroos facet looking for to finish its 11-match shedding streak on Sunday at Marvel Stadium.
But caretaker coach Brett Ratten is each bit as excited to see the likes of Will Phillips, George Wardlaw, Harry Sheezel, Eddie Ford and Tom Powell rising by means of expertise in opposition to among the competitors’s greatest ball-winners.
“We want to find out about our younger players and we want to expose them to some challenging situations,” Ratten mentioned.
“This week with Marcus Bontempelli, Tom Liberatore, Jack Macrae and Adam Treloar – they’re a star-studded midfield.
“For our boys to go in opposition to them is nice learnings for them and that is going to assist them for his or her profession.”
North Melbourne are winless in four matches since Ratten took the reins from Alastair Clarkson, who stepped away on personal leave last month, but have been more competitive than what they showed in previous weeks.
Ratten said the benefit of a drought-breaking win would be “large” for his developing side but can’t put a finger on when it will come.
“We’ve been inconsistent however I feel we have discovered rather a lot about ourselves and our group and the place we wish to go to,” Ratten mentioned.
“We have not seen the wins … however we all know the place we’re going and there is loads of readability round that with roles and what our KPIs are and what we’re attempting to do as a staff.
“Everybody can see it and now we’re starting to see the benefits of it with some consistent performances, but not four quarters. That’s what we need.”
The Bulldogs (7-6) are clinging to eighth spot regardless of three straight losses and have dropped Josh Bruce, James O’Donnell and Arthur Jones for the North Melbourne conflict.
Tim O’Brien and Mitch Hannan are again, whereas final week’s substitute Oskar Baker returns to the beginning 22.
Source: www.perthnow.com.au
