Kangaroos v Bulldogs - Round 10: Roos win by 22 points | James Mack

It was the Roos' seventh win of the season after 10 rounds, while the reigning premiers - who were gutted player wise in the off-season - slumped to their sixth loss.

But Mack, who booted four majors in the 15.9 (99) to 11.11 (77) loss - said Gunnedah's performance against Tamworth at Wolseley Oval on Saturday afternoon was proof they were heading in the right direction.

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"We had opportunities where we could have won the game," he said.

Gunnedah booted three majors to lead by nine points at the first break. But the Kangaroos surged with five second-quarter goals to lead 6.7 (43) to 3.4 (22) at half-time.

Another five-goal quarter resulted in the lead blowing out to 42 points heading into the fourth quarter, where Gunnedah kicked seven goals to three to finish strongly.

Elliott Bowen booted six major for Tamworth, who have a four-point buffer over their nearest rivals, the Nomads, the Swans and the Saints.

The Saints beat the Swans 10-9 (69) to 9.7 (61) in Inverell on Saturday, while Moree-Narrabri forfeited against New England.

Mack said Gunnedah were "pretty hot and cold".

"That's why we're not going quite as well as we'd like," he added.

"But it was good [on Saturday]. We were happy with how we went, considering they [the Roos] have won most of their games this year."

Gunnedah were untouchable in winning every game en route to claiming back-to-back premierships last year.

Mack estimated the Bulldogs lost about half the team after their grand final win over the Swans last season.

The Bulldogs have a lot of players, he continued, "who were just starting out" in the game.

"A lot of the other teams have got good juniors that have come through the last few year," he said. "I think that's making a difference."

Mack said Gunnedah had "to stay switched on" for the whole match.

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