North Melbourne will be forced to make at least one change for its match against Fremantle on Saturday, after it was confirmed that Josh Goater had ruptured his Achilles during the Round 1 clash with GWS.

Co-captain Luke McDonald is a potential replacement, along with Miller Bergman who can also fill that medium-sized defender role.

McDonald has clocked plenty of minutes across VFL practice matches following a serious hamstring injury in late 2023, and was clean by hand and foot in Saturday's reserves intraclub as he continued to build his fitness.

The Kangas could be bolstered by the return of their other co-captain, with Jy Simpkin looking to play his first game of the campaign against the Dockers.

The midfielder was absent from his side's trip to New South Wales having suffered a concussion against the St Kilda in the AAMI Community Series, but has recovered well overall and appears set to run out onto Marvel Stadium on Saturday.

Hugh Greenwood, Tyler Sellers, and Cooper Harvey are all pushing for selection after filling their boots in the VFL intraclub.

Harvey finished with four goals and Greenwood with three, but it was Sellers who was the standout, underlining why the Roos secured him as a supplementary signing last month by slotting six majors.

Blake Drury and Curtis Taylor have strung together some strong performances in the VFL practice matches on the half-forward flank and wing respectively and could be in line for call-ups, while Charlie Comben has been impressive in his new role behind the ball.

The forward-turned-defender has looked at home in the backline, using his strength and smarts to consistently thwart opposition attacks.