Daniel Motlop belongs to one of footy's most famous family dynasties.

Shannon, his older brother, played in North Melbourne's 1999 premiership. Younger brother Steven played over 200 games for Geelong and Port Adelaide. Cousin Marlon pulled on the Port Adelaide guernsey five times, and now his son Jesse is making his way at Carlton.

For Daniel, who played 130 games and kicked 208 goals throughout his career at the Kangaroos and Power, family, football and identity are all closely connected.

"We come from a really strong footy family and a motivated family. We always wanted to play AFL when we were kids and we knew we could do it with the upbringing we had and the hard work ethic that our father (Eddie) gave us," Motlop said.

That upbringing was in Darwin, where Larrakia man Daniel and his cousin Xavier Clarke, now North Melbourne's forward-line coach, were already causing headaches in junior football.

The pair were so prodigious in the under-14 Northern Territory competition that officials had to act, introducing a two-bounce rule specifically to counter their dominance.

"We just ran with the ball," Motlop laughed.

“You weren't allowed to bounce it too many times because we were probably too good for what we were playing in.

"Because we played a lot of rugby, we used to run the ball down the wing and obviously take a couple of bounces, but we used to chip and chase and grab the ball back on the other end, then you get another two bounces.

"There's ways of exploiting the rules in every system."

At 16, Daniel followed Shannon's path south to Adelaide. He played every league game at North Adelaide in his first SANFL season and was drafted at pick eight to North Melbourne in 2000.

He walked into a club full of battle-hardened characters: Wayne Carey, Glenn Archer, Anthony Stevens, Winston Abraham, Mick Martyn, and a coach who had little interest in easing young players in.

"It was pretty daunting. Your coach was Denis Pagan too, so you were always on your toes," Motlop said.

Getting a game was one thing but holding onto your spot in the side another. At North Melbourne in that era, you played through pain or you didn't play.

"I remember not really telling anyone about my injuries because I knew if I did, I wouldn't be picked," Motlop said. 

"You thought you were soft, talking about your injuries in front of some of those big-name players. I watched blokes like Glenn Archer break collarbones and play through injuries.

"It was (seen as part of) that Shinboner spirit, to play through injuries, and that was tough for an Aboriginal kid just coming from Darwin."

When Dani Laidley took over as coach, something shifted for Motlop, who felt he then had the runway to take off.

"You could talk to Laidley about anything. She gave us a chance to play footy without the pressure on us," he said.

"'Laids' would be up there with the best coach that's ever coached me, the way she articulated the game on a whiteboard, there were no surprises when you went out on field."

Motlop responded with 34 goals in his second-last season at the club, finding his best football alongside Daniel Wells, with Eddie Sansbury another teammate whose friendship has endured long beyond their playing days. Sansbury is now godfather to Motlop's son, Jesse.

A move to Port Adelaide followed, shaped by a run of serious injuries including two or three shoulder reconstructions and osteitis pubis, but also something harder to label. Running out for League games at the Roos while Shannon was in the reserves carried a weight.

"When I was running out to play League and Shannon was playing reserves, it was a bit of a burden on me to get through," Motlop said.

"I just felt like I needed to move on and go back to Adelaide for a different opportunity.

"We created a couple of memories together which was good, but it was always tough."

Growing up, he loved watching Gavin Wanganeen and the First Nations players at North Melbourne, among them the exciting and tough Winston Abraham and Byron Pickett.

"Being at that club did make me a lot tougher and I'm grateful for that," Motlop said.

Over his journey, the sacrifices were real for Motlop, but the game gave back, too.

"Obviously you have to make sacrifices. Leaving home and all of that was really tough for us because we come from a close family. Lucky enough it all paid off, and we've met some great people along the way," he said.

These days, Motlop is the co-founder and general manager of Something Wild Australia, an Indigenous food and beverage company which specialises in game meats and native greens.

Working alongside him are his brothers Steven and Shannon, and their father Eddie.