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The 2013 NAB Cup tonight features two clubs who have teased for so long, and another coming off a tough week. It’s week two of the AFL preseason competition as North Melbourne, Melbourne and Richmond do battle at Etihad Stadium. We’ll have live scores and commentary from 6:45pm AEDT.
No doubting that the back end of 2012 was a massive positive for North Melbourne, winning 10 of their last 12 and making the finals for the first time since 2008.
At Richmond, they’ve always promised but have rarely delivered. So it would be wrong of me to say they should be making the eight, no?
Of course they should be there. The ‘rebuilding’ line is now no longer relevant.
Melbourne on the other hand is a team that has had a lot to deal with this week outside of football, with the tanking probe coming to a head. Now, they must focus on the on-field battles that await them.
North Melbourne’s off-season has been a positive one with the odd injury hiccup, but tonight they have named a relatively fit line-up just weeks away from the season getting underway.
We’re expecting to see more of Majak Daw, especially in the pre-season. It could make or break if he plays as back up to Todd Goldstein, or whether that goes to Daniel Currie.
What will be interesting is to see how Brent Harvey goes in the NAB Cup. He won’t be eligible to play in the season-proper until round seven because of suspension in the flimination final loss to West Coast.
Richmond is in a similar boat to North Melbourne – a list that’s been rebuilding for a while, but now must prove they can they deserve to be playing with the big boys.
They’ve made some good acquisitions in the off season with Chris Knights (Adelaide), Aaron Edwards (North Melbourne) and Troy Chaplin (Port Adelaide) making the move.
They’re nice top-ups. But with Trent Cotchin, Jack Riewoldt, Brett Deledio and Dustin Martin getting another year under their belt together, this is a team that should be going places.
Melbourne’s 2012 was just plain tough. Hit from pillar to post from the pundits, fans and even from coaching staff.
There was no surprise of the broom going through and getting rid of some players that just rode on the idea of being an AFL player, but not performing as an AFL player should.
So tonight, we should get to see who of this new batch of players is going to step up and uphold the beliefs of the Demons.
The acquisition of Chris Dawes is a big talking point after the trade period, but former Geelong player Shannon Byrnes is one to look out for after a strong pre-season. Jack Viney will hopefully get a run after being selected under the father-son rule in the draft.
Out of the three matches tonight, the most interest will indeed be the Kangaroos and Tigers.
There’s every chance the last spot in the top eight this season could come down to these two sides. So some bragging rights on the line – but it could mean more than just that tonight.
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