Demons v Kangaroos - snippets

Star Man: Lindsay Thomas (North Melbourne) - The Roos' second-year small forward is turning into one of the great draft bargains after he was picked up at pick 53 in the 2006 national draft. After a promising first year, Thomas has been brilliant in 2008 and has now kicked 27 goals for the season and played in every game. Every time the ball went in Thomas' vicinity on Sunday he looked dangerous with his ability to conjure a goalscoring chance out of nothing as he finished with five goals for the day with his three last quarter goals finishing off the Demons.

What a Goal! Melbourne youngster Michael Newton gave Demons' fans something to shout about on an otherwise dismal and cold day with a great piece of skill in the third term. Newton gathered the ball on the boundary line under pressure from two North defenders in Scott McMahon and Shannon Watt and was forced to run closer to the line before somehow bouncing one through from 25 metres out on his non-preferred left foot.

Classic Grab: It was hardly the kind of grab that will feature in highlights reels in years to come but David Hale's first quarter grab when he outmarked two Melbourne defenders set the tone of the match. Hale was off-balance and at full-stretch but still pulled in a superb contested mark and his resultant goal capped off a dominant first term from the Roos.

Turning Point: From the time North Melbourne star Brent Harvey bounced one through in the opening minute there was only going to be one winner in this game. While Brad Miller quickly replied for the Demons that would be the only time this match would be a contest as the Roos slammed on the next six to take complete control of the game. With Corey Jones kicking three and Harvey two in the first term, the Roos led by seven goals to one at quarter-time and although Melbourne improved after that, the Demons never seriously threatened.

Absolute Shocker: If there was one piece of play that summed up the Demons' dreadful first half performance it came late in the second term when James McDonald elected to kick across goal at half-back. McDonald's kick was poor but still should have found ruckman Paul Johnson, who barely got out of a trot allowing young Roos big man Todd Goldstein to intercept. Goldstein then handballed to Thomas, who promptly broke a soft tackle from Matthew Warnock to kick an easy goal to leave Demons' fans shaking their heads in disbelief.

Unsung Hero: Corey Jones (North Melbourne) - Jones might not have had much impact after quarter-time but his first quarter efforts gave the Roos a stranglehold on the game. His first goal came with a great shot on the run from a banana on his non-preferred right foot after just four minutes and two minutes later he bounced through another on his right foot. And by the time he marked and goaled from 25 metres at the ten minute mark, the Roos were already three goals up and cruising.