JUST about everything went wrong for North Melbourne ruckman Hamish McIntosh last year.

Dogged by Achilles tendon problems, he played only one AFL game, and that was in the final round of the season.

At the age of 27, the athletic big man's career was suddenly at the crossroads.

But although he had given up the mantle as North's No.1 ruckman to emerging star Todd Goldstein, McIntosh certainly wasn't ready to call it quits.

Instead, he knuckled down and enjoyed one of his most productive pre-seasons in years.

And on Tuesday night, the hard work paid its first dividend when McIntosh was one of the most impressive players in the Kangaroos' intra-club game at Ballarat's Eureka Stadium.

"It was a long grind through last year, and now it's good to be back out there feeling reasonably fit again," McIntosh said following the match.

"I was cramping up there during the third quarter, but I had a couple of tablets and got through ok.

"It was really frustrating last year. You never want to miss any footy, and I was out for 10 or 11 months in the end, so it was incredibly frustrating.

"But it's nice to come back and get some reward for my effort."

In a sign that Brad Scott might often play two ruckmen during the coming season, McIntosh and Goldstein lined up on the same team in the intra-club clash.

Scott was happy with their efforts.

"They were good," he said. "They had a pretty good understanding in 2010, and Hamish missed most of last year, but I've always had real confidence that they can work well together.

"It's just a matter of getting them out there as often as we can so they can build that chemistry."

However, McIntosh, who rotated between the ruck and the forward line during the intra-club hit-out, knows that he'll need to prove to the coach that he's a versatile player.

"The main thing is that when I go forward I've got to have an impact," he said.

"Tonight I didn't kick too many goals unfortunately, but I did some ok things and I've also got some things to work on."

Having cleared his first hurdle, McIntosh is now set to be a key player in North Melbourne's NAB Cup campaign, which kicks off with matches against Hawthorn and Richmond at Etihad Stadium on Friday, February 17.

"Today was ok, it was a stepping-stone forward, and hopefully now I'm right to go next week," he said.

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