Criticism of Nick Dal Santo's attitude and workrate is misplaced, according to North Melbourne coach Brad Scott.

In fact, Dal Santo is pushing his teammates to lift their standards as the Kangaroos seek to become a genuine top-four contender.

"He's impressed me more as a person and as a leader," Scott told Fox Footy's On the Couch.

"He's not falling into the North Melbourne way of playing, but he's driving the direction of the way we play."

"I can't speak highly enough of him."

Dal Santo's debut for North against Essendon in round one drew plenty of negative commentary, in particular from five-time Hawthorn premiership player Dermott Brereton, who suggested the midfielder would be dropped if he had performed that way under former Saints coach Ross Lyon.

Since making the move from St Kilda as an unrestricted free agent at the end of last season, Dal Santo has made a strong impression at the Kangaroos.

He was appointed to the club's leadership group in January, a worthy achievement that Dal Santo earned according to Scott.

"He's driving that sort of stuff and he's demanding that of his teammates," Scott said.

"He's in our leadership group and that's not a token appointment to our leadership group, he's driving what we're about all season, all pre-season."

As always, Dal Santo's work with the ball has been superb this season. The 30-year-old leads North in disposals (26.7 a game) and lies second behind the much-improved Ben Cunnington in clearances (4.2 per game).

Scott also praised the under-fire Drew Petrie for his defensive pressure.

Statistically, Petrie has had a slow start to the year but Scott said his ability to keep the ball pinned in the forward line was "unrivalled" for a player his size (197cm, 101kg).

"His work defensively is unbelievable at times. I think he's the best big pressure forward in the competition," Scott said.

Meanwhile, Dal Santo believes the Kangaroos can match it with any side in the competition if they replicate Friday night's performance against Fremantle.

"When we play decent footy, like we did at the weekend, we can compete with most teams," Dal Santo said on Channel 9's The Sunday Footy Show.

"Whether we can beat the Hawthorns or Geelongs, I'm not sure. But we'll be around the mark."