2026 North Melbourne Kangaroos vs West Coast Eagles Preview
North Melbourne will be seeking redemption after a humiliating defeat against Fremantle last weekend, but their experiment of playing ‘home’ games in Perth is set for more doom in Round 14.
The Kangaroos sold two matches to Western Australia to boost their finances and are midway through their two-week block in the west, set to face an Eagles outfit that have had arguably their best month of footy in a number of season.
They will be hard to beat in the Round 14 clash front of their local fans, particularly if North Melbourne dish up what they did last week. The Eagles look well placed to cover the 8.5-point line, with their recent form far better than their 4-9 record suggests.
They have tightened things up defensively, conceding less than 70 points per game in their past four, and they pushed Port Adelaide all the way last weekend despite losing key defender Reuben Ginbey during the match.
That defensive improvement is a key reason the under appeals. North Melbourne have been leaking huge scores, conceding more than 120 points per game across their past six, but West Coast have not been involved in shootouts recently. Their games have been built more around pressure, contest and improved structure rather than all-out scoring.
The Kangaroos were dreadful around the contest against Fremantle and were punished badly once the game slipped away. Their inability to compete consistently at stoppage and through the middle remains a major concern.
Luke Davies-Uniacke and Harry Sheezel loom as the obvious ball-winners. Davies-Uniacke has had 25+ disposals in five of his past six matches against West Coast, while Sheezel has an excellent record against the Eagles and should again be busy across half-back and through the middle.
With Harley Reid, Tim Kelly and Tom McCarthy finding plenty of it, the Eagles should be able to generate enough supply to catch out the Roos leaky defence. Jake Waterman remains the key target inside 50 and has kicked three or more goals in three of his past four matches. Take him for the 3+ in a match where the Eagles should cover.
West Coast took out the Round 2 clash between the two sides this season.
- North Melbourne have conceded over 120 points per game in their past six matches, while West Coast have conceded less than 70 in their past four.
- Jake Waterman has kicked 3+ goals in three of his past four matches.
- Luke Davies-Uniacke has had 25+ disposals in five of his past six matches against West Coast.
Head to Head
West Coast enjoyed a 17-point win in the Round 2 clash between the two sides this season at Optus Stadium and the two sides have alternated wins in the past seven contests.
Standout player performances in the recent head-to-heads have come from:
- Harry Sheezel (Roos) – Averaging 32 disposals in his six matches against West Coast, with 30+ in five of those.
- Luke Davies-Uniacke (Roos) – 25+ disposals in five of his past six against the Eagles.
- Nick Larkey (Roos) – Six goals in his last outing against West Coast.
- Jamie Cripps (Eagles) – 3+ goals in two of his past three against the Roos.
North Melbourne Kangaroos Form Analysis
North Melbourne have been up and down like a yo-yo and continue to search for consistency. They are 5-7 this season and after producing what seemed to be yet another breakout game by staging a big comeback to defeat the Gold Coast Suns in Round 11, they returned from the bye and copped another reality check in Round 13, going down to Fremantle by 124 points in what was a day to forget for the club.
They managed just 31 points, while Fremantle piled on 155, making it six in a row where the Kangaroos have conceded 100 points, going at 123 points per game.
Harry Sheezel and Caleb Daniel offered some resistance by picking up 27 disposals each, while Luke Parker had 26. George Wardlaw fought hard all day, but it was tough going against the ladder leaders. Sheezel has hit 30+ disposals in four of his past seven matches.
North Melbourne Kangaroos Team News
Riley Hardeman will miss with concussion and there will be a few Roos who will be nervous at selection. Callum Coleman-Jones is set to return, while Toby Pink, Cooper Harvey, Bailey Scott and Robert Hansen Jr are pressing for selection.
West Coast Eagles Form Analysis
West Coast have a win-loss record of 4-9 but come off a promising last month of footy, defeating GWS and Essendon in that period, while their two losses have been close ones, including last week’s six-point loss to Port Adelaide. They were also competitive in front of 90,000 fans at the MCG when going down by 10 points to Collingwood.
Their improvement has come on the back of some better ball use and tighter defence that has seen them concede an average of just 69 points per game in that period.
Up forward, Jake Waterman comes off another three-goal haul and has hit that mark in four of his past five matches, while Tom McCarthy (31 disposals against Port), Tim Kelly (26) and Harley Reid (25) continue their consistent form. McCarthy has had 25+ disposals in four of his past five matches, hitting 30+ in three of those. Kelly has had 25+ in each of his past two.
West Coast Eagles Team News
West Coast are set to lose their key defender, Reuben Ginbey, to a quad injury, but Jack Graham and Jack Hutchinson are both a chance to return from injury. Former Brisbane premiership player Brandon Starcevich was solid in his first match for the club, while Elijah Hewett and Fin Macrae continue their solid form in the WAFL.