First quarter: Melbourne 6.3 (39) to North Melbourne 3.1 (19)
Melbourne had an impressive first term, booting six goals to three, leading by 20 points at the first break.
Alex Neal-Bullen got the ball rolling, when he registered the first for the day.
By the 19-minute mark, the Demons had four goals to one, with Tom McDonald, Bernie Vince and Jesse Hogan all on the board.
Bayley Fritsch in his first full official AFL game, opened his account at the 22-minute mark. And when Tom Bugg secured Melbourne’s sixth, it capped off a strong start by the red and blue.
Ben Brown, Billy Hartung and Jarrad Waite kicked North Melbourne’s goals.
Second quarter: Melbourne 8.3 (51) to North Melbourne 6.4 (40)
North Melbourne upped the ante in the second term, booting three of the first four goals.
Christian Petracca was Melbourne’s only goalkicker during that period and by the 18-minute mark, the Kangas trailed by just five points.
But when James Harmes marked and converted early in time-on, the Demons took an 11-point lead into the main change.
At half-time, Michael Hibberd had 15 disposals – the most on the ground – while Neal-Bullen was next best with 12 possessions, with Harmes and Bernie Vince having 11 each.
Former Hawk and new Roo Billy Hartung was the only multiple goalscorer entering the second half with two goals, and he had a team-high nine touches.
Third quarter: Melbourne 15.8 (98) to North Melbourne 7.4 (46)
After being outscored 3.3 to 2.0 in the second term, Melbourne hit back hard in the third term, booting seven goals to one.
And at three quarter-time, the Demons led by 52 points.
Hogan bagged the first two of the second half, before Cameron Zurhaar managed North Melbourne’s only major for the term.
From that point, Melbourne booted five in a row.
Harmes started it with his second, before goals followed from Mitch Hannan, Jake Melksham, Neal-Bullen (his second) and Fritsch, who marked just before three quarter-time and slotted through his second after the siren.
Final quarter: Melbourne 19.10 (124) d North Melbourne 11.5 (71)
Melbourne started the final term, where it left the third quarter.
Fritsch made it back-to-back goals, when he landed his third for the day, just 56 seconds in.
His effort was Melbourne’s sixth in a row and it gave the red and blue a 58-point advantage.
Although North Melbourne responded with three consecutive majors, when Corey Maynard kicked his first and Tom Bugg booted his second, the Demons were back out to 54 points. In the end, the Dees won by 53 points.
Hibberd had a game-high 27 disposals, Clayton Oliver had 22 touches, while Petracca, Neal-Bullen, Melksham and Christian Salem had 19 each. Hartung was North’s best with 18 possessions.
