NORTH Melbourne will spend the next fortnight weighing up whether it can shoehorn all three of its ruckmen into one side, after the impressive Tristan Xerri again staked his claim to feature in the team's season-opening clash with Hawthorn.
Kangaroos coach David Noble described Xerri as being among the "top four or five performers" at the club this summer, having continued his excellent pre-season with a standout display
against Sydney in the AAMI Community Series over the weekend.
In the absence of new recruit Callum Coleman-Jones, who missed with minor knee soreness that isn't expected to keep him sidelined for round one, Xerri excelled playing alongside veteran Todd Goldstein.
According to Champion Data, Xerri competed in 52 ruck contests in 109 minutes on the field compared to Goldstein's 41 ruck contests in 100 minutes. He finished with 17 disposals, a game-high 29 hitouts, six tackles and five contested marks.
With Xerri in the ruck against Sydney's duo of Tom Hickey and Hayden McLean, North Melbourne lost the clearance count 15-19. With Goldstein, the Kangaroos lost the clearance count 8-19.
His performance is bound to leave Noble with a selection conundrum just 13 days out from the side's round one clash against the Hawks, as Goldstein, Xerri and Coleman-Jones all vie for the starting ruck role