A 372-day stint away from the senior side ended for Levi Greenwood against Fremantle, who marked his return for North Melbourne with 21 possessions and a team-high 8 tackles.

Speaking to NMFC.com.au, the hard-nosed midfielder said he relished the opportunity to run out in the royal blue and white once more.

“It was a long time waiting and trying to put my name up. It’s the longest stint I’ve ever done before getting back in so it was good to get there,” Greenwood said.

Early in the year, it seemed Greenwood was on the verge of being selected, but he was forced to bide his time and continue to play good football in the VFL.

However, he was comfortable with the process despite the natural frustration that comes with an extended spell away from the seniors.

“Some weeks you do wonder why you’re not in but you know there’s a reason behind it and the coaches pick a side for a reason. They want to pick the side that they think is going to give the best opportunity of winning on the weekend.

“That’s what you’ve got to think about, not getting angry and realising they do go through a process and you’re not in for a reason.”

Greenwood had confidence in his form and the role that helped him earn a recall.

“I knew the opportunity was going to come because I’d been playing good footy for a while now.

“I know exactly what my position is and when there’s guys like Cunners (Ben Cunnington), Ziebs (Jack Ziebell), and Andrew Swallow who are all inside-mids are playing well every week it’s going to be hard to go in front of them.

“They’re just mainstays so I had to wait for an opportunity, so with Ziebs going down it was unfortunate, but it gave me a chance.”

Nevertheless, it was tough for the left-footer at VFL level, fighting a tendency to get his name on the stat sheet through sheer weight of possessions.

“When you go back you sometimes just want to go and get some kicks because you think all the coaches are looking for is how many stats you had on the weekend,” Greenwood added.

“It’s not like that though. They watch what you’ve done defensively and with the VFL coaches in Bulldog (Jarred Moore) and JL (John Lamont) they don’t care how many touches you have, they notice exactly what you’re doing.

“If you’re not working hard defensively they’ll say it and you won’t get your name put up. So it doesn’t matter in the end how many kicks and handballs you get.”

Moore in particular has been a big help for Greenwood. Doubling as a development coach and midfield partner, the hot favourite for the Liston Medal has provided a helping hand whenever needed.

“I work really well with Bulldog and it’s great to have him out there because he has the experience and leadership to give us direction while we’re out there.

“It’s good for him to give us feedback during the game and he can also tell you what you’re doing right or wrong. He’s someone you can lean on and ask a question while you’re on the ground and he’ll have an answer with the setups and structures.”

In Darren Crocker’s mid-season review, he gave the following analysis of Greenwood:

“We want him to play AFL level football at VFL. He’s done that the last few weeks. When you go back through their vision, you keep going back to, ‘If that was Gary Ablett you were playing on, would you be able to get away with that?’"

According to the gutsy midfielder, that honest appraisal helped provide an extra thought process in his game.

“It does make you think about it a bit differently but the way I attack it every week is that I don’t want my opponent to get a touch anyway. The reason I’m tagging is because they’re the opposition’s best player and most damaging.”

As he looks to cement his spot in the senior side, the lessons learnt from all the coaches and his time in the VFL will stand Greenwood in good stead.