North Melbourne has fallen to its fifth straight defeat, going down to the Tigers by 54 points at Metricon Stadium.

Richmond burst out of the blocks and was rarely challenged by a Roos' side that struggled to use the ball effectively going forward.

North showed some fight in the second quarter, with Josh Walker performing strongly in a move into attack, and Shaun Higgins terrific through the midfield.

But it was short-lived, as the Tigers booted five goals to nil in the second half.

Jack Ziebell left the ground midway through the first quarter with a hamstring injury, and didn't return, while Kyron Hayden was stretchered off after a courageous marking attempt in the third term.

Higgins battled hard all night, finishing with 36 disposals, while Trent Dumont (25 disposals), Walker (14 disposals, 8 marks) and Curtis Taylor (18 disposals) were solid contributors. 

Ben McKay also made an encouraging return to the team, spending long periods of the game on Richmond tall Tom Lynch. 

RELATED: Match photos

RICHMOND 4.3 6.5 9.7 11.11 (77)
NORTH MELBOURNE 0.0 2.3 2.6 2.11 (23)

GOALS
Richmond: Aarts 2, Chol 2, Martin 2, Castagna, Lynch, Pickett, Riewoldt, Rioli
North Melbourne: Dumont, Walker

BEST
Richmond: Eggmolesse-Smith, Bolton, Grimes, Short, Higgins, Martin
North Melbourne: Higgins, Walker, Dumont, Hall

INJURIES
Richmond: Caddy (hamstring)
North Melbourne: Zurhaar (calf) replaced in selected side by McKay, Ziebell (hamstring), Hayden (head)