Saturday’s AFL 2018 Round 14 match is between Western Bulldogs and North Melbourne Kangaroos. The opening kick is set to commence at 19:25 local time with the game to be played at Etihad Stadium. The away team North Melbourne Kangaroos are the favourites for the match. View our preview and teams for the game between Western Bulldogs and North Melbourne Kangaroos.
When: 19:25 | Saturday 23/06/2018
Where: Etihad Stadium
Preview:
Injuries to Western Bulldogs skipper Easton Wood and Jack Macrae are massive outs for the Dogs and with their season over, they would be looking towards preparations for 2019.
Despite going down to the Cats, I thought the Kangaroos played pretty strongly and weren’t disgraced.
If they play to that level, they will easily account for the Dogs.
KEY BATTLE: Marcus Bontempelli v Ben Jacobs
Jacobs is the Kangaroos’ go-to tagger and will get the big job on the Dogs’ best player.
The Verdict
North Melbourne comfortably against the depleted Dogs.
The Kangaroos have a 52-41 (55.9 percent) W/L record at Etihad Stadium since 2011.
Unibet Odds:
Western Bulldogs at $4.50
North Melbourne at $1.21
Odds:
Tip: North Melbourne Kangaroos at $1.20
Value Bet: First Goal Scorer: Mason Wood at $9.50
More Info:
Teams:
Western Bulldogs: 
B Bailey Williams, Jackson Trengove, Ed Richards
HB Dale Morris, Zaine Cordy, Jason Johannisen
C Hayden Crozier, Marcus Bontempelli, Lachie Hunter
HF Caleb Daniel, Josh Schache, Mitch Wallis
F Luke Dahlhaus, Billy Gowers, Patrick Lipinski
FOL Tom Boyd, Toby McLean, Josh Dunkley
I/C Mitch Honeychurch, Marcus Adams, Aaron Naughton, Roarke Smith
EMG Lewis Young, Jordan Roughead, Brad Lynch, Lin Jong
IN: Dale Morris, Josh Dunkley, Marcus Adams, Aaron Naughton
OUT: Shane Biggs (omitted), Lukas Webb (injured), Jack Macrae (injured), Easton Wood (injured)
North Melbourne Kangaroos: 
B Marley Williams, Majak Daw, Scott D. Thompson
HB Sam Wright, Robbie Tarrant, Jamie Macmillan
C Trent Dumont, Ben Jacobs, Nathan Hrovat
HF Jed Anderson, Mason Wood, Shaun Atley
F Jy Simpkin, Ben Brown, Jack Ziebell
FOL Todd Goldstein, Ben Cunnington, Shaun Higgins
I/C Paul Ahern, Kayne Turner, Tom Murphy, Luke McDonald
EMG Ryan Clarke, Alex Morgan, Billy Hartung, Cameron Zurhaar
IN: Nathan Hrovat, Jed Anderson
OUT: Billy Hartung (omitted), Cameron Zurhaar (omitted)
AFL News:
North Melbourne’s unlikely AFL finals push has suffered a major blow, with key forward Jarrad Waite re-injuring his calf muscle.
Waite doubts it is the sort of 10-week calf injury that has floored GWS veteran Brett Deledio, but the Kangaroos star cannot say for now when he will be back.
North have defied expectations to be in eighth spot after 12 games and Waite has been a major factor in their stunning form.
But Waite also has a lengthy injury history and he first injured the calf during the warm-up before the round-11 win over Brisbane.
He missed the pre-bye loss to Geelong and then felt a problem with the calf earlier this week when he tried some jogging and walking.
“I’m not going to really put a time limit on it – I don’t think it’s going to be a 10-week injury or anything like that – but really you just have to respect it,” he said.
“Hopefully I play some good footy in the second half of the year.”
Waite added this week’s twinge was nothing as bad as the initial injury, but there were strong warning signs.
He added being frustrated about this latest setback was the worst possible response.
“If I get frustrated and I potentially do things too early, then that’s when stuff can really hit the fan,” he said.
“I had scans – I don’t know what they mean – so the doc’s told me there’s something there and I will just listen to the docs.”
But coach Brad Scott admitted to frustration that the injured had flared again.
“You can’t shy away from the fact that when you’re conservative in your approach and then you have a week off and then he’s unavailable the week after, it’s more than a bit frustrating,” he said.
“But it’s just the reality of it and with Jarrad’s age and his importance to our team, it’s just the prudent thing to do, to be very conservative.
“That’s why it’s very difficult to put a time frame on it.
“It’s not a massive setback, it’s just not responding the way we’d like.”
Waite is 35 and has played 240 games for Carlton and North.
Midfielder Jed Anderson is set to return from a hamstring injury and Scott said he could be a straight swap for Waite ahead of Saturday night’s game against the Western Bulldogs at Etihad Stadium.
“We’ve tried to add a layer of flexibility to our side, so we’re not just limiting our replacement to a forward,” he said.
