North Melbourne Tasmanian Kangaroos' captain Emma Kearney has praised the impact Jess Duffin’s return had on the side.

Stepping away from the game to have a child, Duffin faced 714 days between AFLW games before making her return in Saturday’s win over Carlton.

North had lost two consecutive games before Duffin’s inclusion, with her addition to the side coming at the perfect time, according to Kearney.

“Our defenders weren’t getting as involved in our offence as much as we’d have liked,” Kearney told SEN.

“To get someone like Jess Duffin, who is a defender who likes to use the ball, was really handy for us.

“When you lose two in a row your confidence can drop a bit ,so it was pleasing to be able to respond the way we did.”

Duffin was not the only North player to impress on Saturday, as the midfield group returned to form, following some added attention from the coaches.

“The last two weeks against Collingwood and Melbourne we were a bit stagnant with our ball movement,” Kearney said.

“Our work rate had probably been a bit down… so our midfield coaches definitely put some pressure on us to come out and play with a bit more intent.”

Kearney said it was important for the team not to dwell on defeats, and tackle each game as it comes. 

Confidence is high according to the skipper, who is hoping for another strong performance against Richmond this Friday.

“You can’t just rely on one or two players to win you games. It’s got to be a whole team performance,” Kearney added. 

“Sport is a bit of a rollercoaster sometimes.

“We’re coming up against a red-hot Tigers on Friday night so hopefully we can bring the mojo.”