North Melbourne has snapped a five-game losing streak and stabilised its season, kicking away in a dramatic 'mini-final' on Friday night to beat Collingwood by 40 points at Etihad Stadium.

In what was billed as a do-or-die clash for the Kangaroos, they built a 46-point lead in the third quarter but were made to fight to the end after a spirited Magpies' fightback.

The margin was cut to just 17 points early in the fourth quarter after five straight Collingwood goals, but after a 20-minute deadlock that produced seven behinds, young Roo Trent Dumont roved cleanly and snapped the sealer.

The final score was 18.16 (124) to 12.12 (84), with the Roos kicking the final four goals of the game to build a flattering margin.

The win effectively eliminated the Magpies as a finals contender and ensured North would keep at least two games between it and challengers Port Adelaide and St Kilda for another week.

It was a fitting result for Kangaroos champion Brent Harvey, who kicked a late goal in his record-equalling 426th game and finished with 25 possessions and eight inside 50s.

Collingwood coach Nathan Buckley said in the build-up that his team was willing to put its reputation on the line on Friday night and would bring finals-like intensity, setting the stage for what turned into a feisty clash, full of spot-fires.

The Kangaroos not only met that intensity, they raised the stakes again and built a 27-point lead at the first break, which it protected well for the next two quarters before the Pies' late rally.

Midfielder Daniel Wells was the star, overcoming a pre-game back problem and working through a tight Levi Greenwood tag to emerge with 29 touches, six clearances and five inside 50s.

Key forward Drew Petrie (seven tackles and 2.2) tackled his way back to form, while wingman Sam Gibson (33 possessions) and young Roos Ryan Clarke (27) and Trent Dumont (15 and two goals) played key roles.

The Kangaroos' backline was superb, led by Michael Firrito and Robbie Tarrant, while Lindsay Thomas – who was again involved in a number of controversial moments – finished with a season-high five goals.

The drama started early, with Wells walking from the ground with trainers 25 minutes before the bounce to seek treatment for what was revealed to be an upper back issue that was impacting his breathing.

All signs pointed to the damaging midfielder being withdrawn, but the Kangaroos doctors worked on him frantically and allowed the game-breaker to flourish.

Wells was the dominant player on the ground in the first quarter, racking up three of the first four centre clearances to get the game on his team's terms.

By quarter-time the Kangaroos were 27 points clear and he had 11 possessions, two inside 50s and two goal assists to his name.

"I thought the tone was set from pretty early on from our perspective," coach Brad Scott said.

"Collingwood have been playing some really good footy, statistically their last month is just about as good as anyone's and they've beaten some pretty good teams.

"So we knew it was going to be a tough battle and we certainly got that."

The Magpies were already one man down after defender Ben Sinclair suffered a head knock in the first quarter and eventually was taken for precautionary scans.

They could have rolled over when the margin swelled to 46 points in the third quarter, but they fought back bravely on the back of ruckman Brodie Grundy (29 hit-outs and 19 possessions) and midfielder Steele Sidebottom (28 and two goals).

Sidebottom's second goal five-minutes into the final term sparked the match to new life, cutting the margin to 16 points, but from there a series of missed opportunities will haunt the Magpies.

Rather than wondering what could have been, Buckley was left reflecting on another flat start.

"Effort was really poor early … again, that's our third week in a row when we've given proven finals sides and really good football sides a start," the coach said.

"We've dug ourselves out of one of them and haven't been able to dig ourselves out of the last two.

"We were gallant, but in the end you've got to give yourself a more of a chance by starting better."

As well as Grundy and Sidebottom, captain Scott Pendlebury (30 possessions and seven clearances) and Taylor Adams (30 and four) pushed on for the Magpies.

It was a horror night for forward Travis Cloke, who finished scoreless and with just three marks, while Alex Fasolo returned from a shoulder injury with four possessions and one goal.

COLLINGWOOD 2.2 4.4 10.7 12.12 (84)
NORTH MELBOURNE 6.5 10.7 14.10 18.16 (124)

GOALS
Collingwood: Blair 2, Moore 2, Greenwood 2, White 2, Sidebottom 2, Pendlebury, Fasolo
North Melbourne: Thomas 5, Petrie 2, Brown 2, Ziebell 2, Dumont 2, Harvey 2, Macmillan, Gibson, Goldstein

BEST
Collingwood: Sidebottom, Adams, Grundy, Pendlebury, Treloar
North Melbourne: Wells, Gibson, Thomas, Petrie, Cunnington, Firrito, Clarke

INJURIES
Collingwood: Sinclair (concussion)
North Melbourne: Nil

Reports: Nil
Umpires: Stevic, Fleer, McInerney
Official crowd: 36,041 at Etihad Stadium