DAMIEN Hardwick's suspicion was right.
North Melbourne had tweaked its ball movement in Brad Scott's final fortnight as coach, but the process went into overdrive under caretaker coach Rhyce Shaw on Friday night.
Shaw's Roos kicked long 45.7 per cent of the time (ranked third for round 11), climbing to 52.4 in set situations (second), compared to 37.1 (13th) and 39.7 (15th), respectively, across the first 10 rounds.
That percentage of kicks going long spiked from 33.7 per cent in round eight, to 39.3 a week later, then 40.4 in round 10, so there was a gradual shift.
"I really noticed a difference tonight – there's no doubt," Hardwick said after the Tigers' shock 37-point defeat to North.
"But they did go more long down the line last week (against the Western Bulldogs). (It's a) very small sample size, so we'll see how it pans out."
That we will, although the way North moved the Sherrin contrasted with how other teams have approached facing Richmond this season.
Opposition sides tend to flip the ball around when they take on the Tigers, who concede a competition-most 253 contested possessions per game.
However, the Roos – the AFL's No.1 handball team in the first 10 rounds – went the other way, having their fewest uncontested possessions for the season (212).
https://www.afl.com.au/news/2019-06-03/stats-files-new-coach-new-gameplan-the-gradual-shift-for-roos
