Richmond has suffered its fifth loss of the season, in a disappointing performance against North Melbourne at Etihad Stadium.

The Kangaroos led from start to finish, setting up the win with a dominant first half which yielded 11 goals to two.

The Tigers trailed by 53 points at the main break, and despite a lift in intensity at the beginning of the third term, they couldn't make an impression on the deficit.

Despite the lopsided scoreboard, there were some positive signs for the Tigers.

Captain Trent Cotchin worked hard for four quarters and finished with 25 disposals, Troy Chaplin won his battle against Drew Petrie, and Nathan Foley was tireless in the midfield with 24 possessions and six tackles.

Steve Morris continued his strong form, both defensively, and up the ground.  He finished with two goals and 13 disposals.

And Matt White, who again started as the sub, was introduced early due to concussion suffered by Brandon Ellis, and was busy with two goals and 19 possessions.

Richmond hosts the Gold Coast Suns in Cairns next weekend.


NORTH MELBOURNE             3.3      11.6     15.8     19.14   (128)               
RICHMOND                                2.2       2.7       4.15       8.18   (66)        

GOALS
North Melbourne: Tarrant 4, Bastinac 3, Black 2, Mullett 2, Harvey 2, Ziebell 2, Petrie, Greenwood, Cunnington, Gibson
Richmond: Morris 2, White 2, Riewoldt 2, Ellis, Jackson

BEST
North Melbourne: Adams, Hansen, Thompson, Hine, Swallow, Tarrant, Ziebell, Goldstein
Richmond: Morris, Cotchin, Chaplin, Foley

INJURIES
North Melbourne: TBA
Richmond: Bachar Houli (soreness) replaced in the selected side by Matt Dea, Brandon Ellis (concussion)

SUBSTITUTES
North Melbourne: Brad McKenzie replaced Ben Cunnington in the fourth quarter
Richmond: Matt Dea replaced Brandon Ellis in the second quarter

Reports: Nil
Umpires: Donlon, Bannister, Margetts
Official crowd: 45,966 at Etihad Stadium