North Melbourne needed to produce a response on the weekend. A response to prove the Round 3 loss to Brisbane was a blip, not a habit. A response to prove to all that the young side is on the right path. A response is what was needed, and a response is what was delivered against the Swans.

While the valuable victory eluded the young side at the final hurdle, the aggression and intent in which the Kangaroos attacked the contest, and, most importantly the composure shown in defence, proved that they're a capable and dangerous outfit when they're on song.

David Noble says he was pleased with the way his senior players stepped up and led the side in a difficult week leading up to the game.

"I'm very proud of the response and I think our leaders took an enormous amount of responsibility this week with the playing group. I was really proud of the way they responded and hung in," Noble said.

"It's really mixed [feelings]. I'm frustrated because we put ourselves in a position where we felt we could win the game. There were some errors at the end but it ended up being a really good, high-pressure game for us.

"The turnaround is a great response … [and] I thought we fought ourselves back into some competition today."

SWANS v KANGAROOS Full match coverage and stats 

One of those leaders to take responsibility for his side was Jack Ziebell, with the long-term skipper shifting forward against the Swans where he produced an electric five-goal display.

Ziebell, who finished third in last season's Syd Barker Medal after playing the whole season in defence, returned to his roots to the position where he has traditionally played the best football of his career.

Ziebell moved into the backline following the arrival of Noble at the club, and he produced a strong debut campaign in the back half of the ground last year which culminated in a third-placed finish in the Syd Barker Medal.

Noble says the decision to move Ziebell forward was purely tactical, however he hinted it could be a long-term solution.

"He's (Ziebell) a very talented young man and he's a terrific leader. I floated it to him earlier in the week and we felt there was an opportunity to draw the ball a bit deeper this week," Noble said.

"Nick Larkey's been in really good form and we felt if we could put those two strike forwards together then we might get a result. I probably didn't expect the skipper to kick five but I was pleased. 

"His contribution was huge ... I still think there's times we'll consider playing him back … [but] the shift and the change-up has been really good for him and it'll probably be hard to move him out of there next week."

The Kangaroos' season continues this week at Marvel Stadium against the Western Bulldogs in the Good Friday SuperClash. Get your tickets here.