Doing without him wasn't an option, especially with the side sporting five wins, four losses and a draw and needing its best men available if it was to revisit a preliminary final finish.
Pratt left the field for a brief period but returned later in the game to continue a season with similarities and differences to his very encouraging 2007.
Playing every match and finishing third in the Syd Barker Medal count, he emerged as a figure crucial to a defence that was eventually vacated by club great Glenn Archer.
Little has changed.
But despite Archer's retirement, Pratt hasn't been confined to a backman's role, flourishing further up the ground while the Roos have charged to a successive finals berth.
"It's been a bit of a different year compared to the last few," he said, ahead of North's elimination final against the Sydney Swans at ANZ Stadium.
"I was probably playing more of that stopper role in the forward line previously, but I've gone up the ground a little bit more. I'm just trying to find a good balance.
"Sometimes it's frustrating because I like to defend, but that's not what the role in the team is. I'll just do what the coach asks of me and if I do a good job, hopefully things just keep going forward."
Third in kicks for the year, high-possession games against the Brisbane Lions, Port Adelaide, Collingwood and Geelong have come from a mix of playing loose in defence and venturing into the centre.
It has been dictated by his match-up, and trust Pratt will earn a central role against the Swans who welcome the return of Adam Goodes and Ryan O'Keefe.
Experience is the Swans' strength and Pratt, with 83 games to his credit, has embraced a senior role in his own side – perhaps prematurely.
Never one to shirk responsibility, he only saw September for the first time last season and is keen to add to those three appearances.
"I'm 25 and probably in the top 10 in age at the club, which is funny," Pratt said. "We've got a pretty young list.
"There's still a lot of work to do. You can never be the complete player, whether it's on the field or off the field or with leadership stuff or just being part of the team.
"You take a lot even out of the weekend (the loss to Port Adelaide). I got some good feedback from people about stuff in the game and I'll just look to work on that."
And while he's had some close calls with the shoulder, North's fortunes take priority.
"I'll see how it goes for the [rest of the] year really," he said. "It's probably similar to (Crow Jason) Porplyzia and (Swan Tadhg) Kennelly, theirs come out a lot, but mine's probably a bit more stable.
"It looks like it's going to get through. I've been able to put some strength back into it in the gym again now, it's settled down a bit and felt good the last couple of weeks.
"I'll be booked in [for surgery]. It's going to be a tight squeeze between the end of the season and the footy trip, but I'll have to get in and get that done and do the right thing and make sure it's right for next year."
