North Melbourne can confirm defender Jackson Archer sustained a high grade left hamstring strain in Thursday night’s loss to Essendon.

A scan on Friday confirmed the extent of the injury, which saw the 22-year-old leave the field midway through the second quarter. 

"Obviously this is really disappointing news for Jackson and our whole program. He’s a key part of our defensive structure and was only just finding continuity in his footy again after missing a few weeks," North Melbourne’s general manager of football Todd Viney said.

"We anticipate Jackson will miss approximately eight weeks, but that timeline will depend on his early rehab progress."