After breaking the Round 1 hoodoo, Brent Harvey says North players still have plenty more to give.

The Roos claimed their first win in a season opener under Brad Scott and according to Harvey, know there is plenty of hard work ahead.

“It’s still very early in the year, it’s always good to get off to a good start,” Harvey said on Sunday.

“I don’t think we played our best football. We’ve still got a lot of improvement (but) to get those close wins is something that we probably haven’t achieved in the last couple of years.”

Harvey said the build-up to the clash only added to the emotion of the win.

“Wining Round 1 is like winning a final because there’s been so much build up before that, you do three or four months of pre-season, so when you lose that Round 1 clash it’s like the world’s ended.

“To get the win last night, let me tell you, it was an easier sleep than losing.”

The 410-gamer had a third quarter to remember, booting three goals and crucially pulling back Adelaide’s lead, before the Roos got the edge in the final quarter.

“I wasn’t doing much, so I had to pull my finger out,” the 37-year-old said of his performance.

“I’ve got enormous faith in my preparation, knowing if I don’t get a kick early, things will open up later in the game when people get tired.

“The last four or five pre-seasons have been huge, we’ve got faith in our second half ability and a credit to our boys they came out and played really well.”

Saturday night's game was also the first time the players got to experience the interchange cap in the season proper, a change which Harvey said he had well and truly embraced.

“It’s no different for me, I actually like staying out on the ground,” the number 29 said.

“As a player we probably stayed out on the ground 2 or 3 minutes longer for each rotation, that suits me down to the ground. I started in the 90s you’ve got to remember, so back then you didn’t get to come off unless you were dragged.”

Harvey said he expected Lindsay Thomas to play next week after suffering a “stinger” in the second quarter, while fellow small forward Jed Anderson would be assessed over the coming days after coming from the ground with hamstring soreness.