North Melbourne will pick veteran forward Jack Darling to face Hawthorn on Saturday at UTAS Stadium despite suffering a "pretty significant injury" last week.

Darling copped a slash to his leg after he came into contact with his opponent's boot, which required immediate intervention from the Kangaroos' medical team.

The former Eagle managed to play out the remainder of the clash against Carlton's Jack Silvagni, and is surprisingly in the frame to take on the Hawks.

"It was obviously a pretty significant injury as it turned out (and) enormously courageous for him to come back out onto the field," North Melbourne coach Alastair Clarkson said.

"Our docs did a great job to be able to do that, and his courage to accept it could be wrapped up, get back out on the ground and contribute to our win was really important for us.

"Needless to say, he's had that stitched up and hasn't been able to do much training yet. Because of the stitches, he's unable to get it too moist with sweating and stuff.

"He'll be a test, we'll select him tonight to play and hope that he gets up, but that decision might be made an hour before the game โ€ฆ he gives himself a chance to play, but we won't know until an hour before the game, more than likely."

It prompted a "timely reminder" from the AFL, sending a memo to all 18 clubs regarding the type of boots worn by players.

"This is a timely reminder regarding the type of football boots which may be worn in AFL matches, specifically the prohibition of metal stops, which pose a serious risk of injury to players," the memo said, according to Channel 7.

"To prioritise player safety, the AFL strictly enforces regulations that prohibit the use of metal stops or studs on football boots.

"As such, it is the responsibility of all AFL clubs and players to ensure that boots worn during matches fully comply with these rules.

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"Under AFL regulations 4.8, clubs may be sanctioned up to $40,000 breach."

Silvagni was ultimately cleared of any wrongdoing.

Collingwood's Isaac Quaynor obtained a similar injury in 2020, when it was revealed that Sydney's Sam Wicks wore illegal boots that resulted in a brutal, eight-inch gash to his shin.

The Kangaroos' improvement since the wretched Good Friday clash has seen a dramatic turnaround, yielding three victories, a draw and two losses by under 10 points.