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"That's where I think they've got the edge." | First Thoughts - North Melbourne vs West Coast (15.06.26)
14 Jun 2026
Transcript generated automatically by AI and may contain errors.
Chapter 1: What were the initial thoughts on the Kangaroos' performance?
Fine line between pleasure and pain, isn't it? I can't tell you, I was overly confident that Jake was going to miss that shot. We were lucky to win in the end. We did do enough however, particularly coming off such a poor performance last week. We did do enough, we tackled well, we applied a lot of pressure.
And particularly, you know, around end of the first quarter and start of the second, you know, Harley got going, lit the fuse, you know, in the last part of the first quarter and early part of the second.
And, you know, to rally from that when we were significantly challenged when we were on the road and, you know, the West Coast crowd got behind their side and we could have really easily folded at that point in time, particularly after last week's loss.
Alistair Clarkson speaking there on their close win against West Coast in Perth. Fine line between pleasure and pain. Kingy, you did this game.
Chapter 2: How did North Melbourne manage to secure a close win?
Your first thoughts here?
Well, it's just the same. Are your glass half full or empty? On North. Yes. I don't think you can be overly glowing of their performance. So I think you'd have to just be happy with half a glass. Could you say that... We've been less than half a glass in the pot.
Could you say there's six wins from their 13, which is a better position that they've been in in the last little bit?
Yeah, yeah.
Chapter 3: What challenges did North Melbourne face during the game?
And look, most of the quarters won have been against the bottom 10 teams, which doesn't show as much progress as what you'd hoped. So if the season finished today, I think it would just be a so-so performance.
Would you rather be... West Coast or North Melbourne, who's closer to winning the next final between those two teams?
Well, that's a good chat, which I found myself having with consoling North fans to spot the win on the weekend. If Ruben Ginby plays, West Coast win by five goals. Yeah. Because Larkin and Darling don't have the luxuries that they had. And in the end, that was the difference. They were just one...
Chapter 4: Who were the standout players in the match?
quality key defender short, the Eagles. And then, of course, Dersmer doesn't play. Now, Dersmer and O'Sullivan probably offset. But the key defender was... And Jimby's been in really good form. Like, seriously good form. Yeah, he has. So they actually got them at the right time. But... Look, I don't know the answer to that.
I do know that Harley Reid is grabbing games by the throat for larger sections now than what he has done.
Chapter 5: What impact did injuries have on West Coast's performance?
What was five minutes or 10 minutes last year is now 25 minutes, 30 minutes. It's not the 120, but we're starting to see... That real dominance and anger and club-dragging drive that he has come with me for longer periods. So do the Kangaroos have that player? She's will get you by stealth. Maybe it's Wardlaw, but he doesn't seem to have the damage on the outside that Reid has.
So I don't think you can ever win it or even win a final without a torchbearer. Eagles have got theirs. I'm just not sure who it is for the Kangas.
And the Eagles aerial power, which you discussed last night, but Shanahan's ended up taking five contested marks and could have won it for them.
Chapter 6: How does the coaching strategy reflect on team performance?
And I love the fact that he's made of the right stuff because he missed that easier shot and then takes another contested mark moments later and goes back and kicks the check side. It wasn't even looking to pass it off. And then Duff Teitler takes a big contested mark late. Then even like Bazzo was taking contested marks. I think they're...
Their aerial power is something that's going to be hard to combat in the coming years because Duff Twilight's going to be something else. This is year one, and he's already showing signs.
Shanahan, you mentioned his draft position last night and all the clubs that overlooked him, particularly Richmond, but I don't know what the upside is on him and where he can get to, but that's where I think they've got the edge, is not only Dersmer and Reid, but the aerial power that they've got.
Well, just the versatility too. So the coach is not afraid of throwing him down back and then throwing him back forward.
Chapter 7: What are the fans' reactions to the current state of North Melbourne?
Or behind the ball. Like do it all, right?
Just throw him around as a loose. When they won early, he put him behind the ball as the spare. I was like, wow, this is a bit of trust in the young man.
His hands are just a one-touch marker, isn't he? In and gone. He took three of the biggest pack marks you'll see on the weekend. And he's only played 23 games of footy. And it's just so exciting when you've got someone like this.
Chapter 8: What does the future hold for both teams after this match?
Now, they're well on their way to showing some signs. And Mini was under pressure probably four weeks ago. It's a loss. I understand that. But, gee, they were pretty good for the side they had there. If they had have won this game, they would have won with less. And that's a good space for the coach to live in.
And as we keep saying every Monday, no quote has aged worse than Brady Rawlings saying that he's not going to bolster their defensive stocks in the offseason. We got Dawson. We got Logue. We got Pinky. Yeah, that was a big mistake, Brady, who should be feeling the pressure. But shout out to Nick Larkey. We put it on him on Friday. He was in the gun. Excellent performance. Four goals, nine scoring.
Took a couple of big marks up the ground as well. So... He definitely responded on a night where they didn't have that many winners. She's a winner, definitely. Darling winner. Lucky winner. They didn't have a whole lot of winners across the board, I didn't think.
Yeah. I think North fans are a little bit – they're starting to get a bit angry, I reckon. They've gone from upset to a little bit angry, like what's happening, what's going on, and much to do with the defensive stuff. I just knew the Eagles were going to get another look. I just knew. I didn't know who it was going to be, and I knew it was going to be a defensive breakdown of sorts.
It wouldn't have mattered who it was. You just knew. So that's a scary place to live too, isn't it? Because even when you're good, you've shown that there's a little white flag in there somewhere.
And do they have the killer instinct is the question I guess we're asking this morning because this pricked my interest from the skipper who we just pumped up, but Nick Larkey was interesting after the game.
It was great sportsmanship from you just then getting around Jake Waterman.
What did you have to say? I mean, as much as we love winning, you hate seeing that when the opportunity is there for him. But as I said, he's a gun, absolute gun. I watch a lot of his stuff. We'd love to play a bit more like him. That's footy. He's kicked some rippers this year. So, yeah, it's bad luck, but it's, yeah, luck went our way, which is it hasn't for a while.
So, yeah, we'll take that win for sure.
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