The last time they met in an AFL final, Essendon were like a red rag to a bull for North Melbourne.

More than a decade later, North veterans Brent Harvey and Drew Petrie will impress that strong history on their teammates ahead of Saturday night’s elimination final.

But this time, the opposition matters less for the Bombers and the `Roos than the simple need to win in September.

Their circumstances this week are light years removed from 2000, when North were the reigning premiers and Essendon were on a mission to atone for the previous year’s preliminary final loss to Carlton.

The rivalry between the two northern Melbourne neighbours was at its fiercest.

Essendon mauled North by 125 points in their qualifying final, a result that signalled the Kangaroos’ reign as the team of the `90s was coming to an end.

The Bombers went on to win their most recent premiership.

Essendon have not won a final since 2004 and were expelled from the top eight last year because of the supplements scandal.

North last won a final in 2007, meaning they have not enjoyed any September success under coach Brad Scott.

As much as North crave a finals win, Kangaroos captain Andrew Swallow said Harvey and Petrie would also make sure everyone in the team knows the significance of their opposition.

Harvey was a member of North’s 1999 premiership team and Petrie debuted in 2001 – a time when North legends such as Wayne Carey, Glenn Archer and Anthony Stevens loved nothing more than beating the Bombers.

“There’s a certain amount … that comes through,” Swallow said of the rivalry.

“You talk especially to the older guys in Boomer and Drewy – they’re probably the two guys who have been around the longest – every time we play them, they usually bring up a couple of stories.”

North and Essendon have been notorious for their inconsistency this season, but Swallow said his team had corrected their problems.

The Kangaroos will go into Saturday’s match on a four-game winning streak.

While none of those wins have been against fellow top-eight teams, North have been able to build momentum and confidence.

“Our last four weeks, we’ve really gotten on top of what makes us a good side,” Swallow said.

“We’re really clear now as a playing group (about) what we need to do during games to play well.

“We’ve ironed out a couple of those things that have probably stopped us from putting a four-quarter performance together.”