Clarkson defends Xerri over Sparrow hit in Dees' win

But the victory was soured when Sparrow was caught high late in the match by a stray arm from Xerri in the immediate follow-up play after a boundary throw-in.

"It's pretty hard to go from competing in the ruck against big Max (Gawn) to then trying to lay a tackle within a split second," Clarkson said.

"It's unfortunate for Tom, but injuries happen.

"We had LD (Luke Davies-Uniacke) knocked out last week with an elbow to the head in a contest. It's just swings and roundabouts.

"When it's a competitive game of footy and there's a lot of numbers around the ball, sometimes accidents like that are going to happen.

"Our view is that there was every intent on big X (Xerri) trying to lay the tackle and he just didn't have enough time to lay it in the correct manner."

The incident was a flashpoint in a physical affair littered with spotfires.

Play was held up for several minutes while Sparrow was assessed by medical staff and eventually taken off on a stretcher.

Xerri tried to check on Sparrow before he was driven off but was pushed away by Melbourne players, who repeatedly went after the ruckman in the dying stages of the match.

Melbourne coach Simon Goodwin was pleased with his leaders, in particular captain Gawn and experienced midfielder Jack Viney, for flying the flag for Sparrow.

"It looked nasty and clearly when someone goes down like that that you love and you care about, like his teammates do, they're going to rally around him," Goodwin said.

In a positive sign, Goodwin said Sparrow was awake and alert after the game.

The 25-year-old midfielder has immediately entered concussion protocols and will be monitored closely by club medical staff in the coming days.

North forward Cam Zurhaar kicked three goals in a third-quarter cameo to drag his side within three points before Melbourne steadied and pulled clear in the last quarter.

The final margin made for a 95-point turnaround from the last time the teams met, when the Kangaroos were comprehensive winners in round two.

It was Melbourne's first win since thumping Sydney at the same venue on May 25, at the end of their mid-season form spike.

The Demons (6-11) now sit 13th, while North (4-12-1) are third-last.

Christian Petracca (31 disposals, one goal), Christian Salem (25 touches), Harvey Langford (24) and Clayton Oliver (21) were influential in a largely scrappy affair, while Bayley Fritsch kicked three goals.

North were well-served by Colby McKercher (29 disposals), Harry Sheezel (29) and returning veteran Luke Parker (27).

Cooper Harvey, son of club legend Brent, kicked four goals and Jack Darling matched Zurhaar's contribution with three.