North Melbourne midfielder Jack Ziebell was taken off the ground on a stretcher after an accidental collision with Alex Rance in Saturday's clash against Richmond.

Ziebell took a heavy knock after attempting to tackle Rance across half-forward, with his head taking impact on the Etihad Stadium turf on his way down.

The courageous Kangaroo waved to the crowd as he was taken off following the hit, which was not sinister or reportable.

PRESS PLAY above to watch the incident | YouTube

He was substituted immediately for midfielder Sam Gibson as the Kangaroos looked to build on a 30-point lead going into half time.

Ziebell has 15 days to recover before the Kangaroos' round-one clash against Adelaide at Adelaide Oval.

At half-time North Melbourne tweeted the club doctor had assessed the midfielder in the rooms and was satisfied he was OK, and there was further encouragement when Ziebell returned to the bench wearing the red vest during the third quarter.