THE SEASON is still two months away but North Melbourne training is already heating up, if a fracas between Shaun Higgins and Luke McDonald is anything to go by.

The two Roos tangled during match simulation on Friday after McDonald ran through Higgins' path and bumped him while he was watching play up the field.

Higgins didn't appreciate the contact and wrestled the young defender to the ground, with teammates getting involved to separate the pair.

"He was trying to link up (play) and run forward and I blocked him," McDonald told NMFC.com.au.

"He didn’t see it coming and didn’t like it." 

Higgins thought McDonald's bump was payback for kicking two goals on the defender.

"He tried to line me up and take me out," he said.

"Right at the last minute, I saw it coming and I took him down."

While the Roos were at pains to point out McDonald and Higgins are tight friends and had their tongues in cheek speaking after the altercation, there was clearly some feeling on the track at Arden Street.

"We’re very good mates but there’s always a bit of added spice out there when the games begin," McDonald said. 

"Higgo and I in particular, always seems to get tangled up but we both enjoy it."

After an off-season of change at North, competition across the squad at training has ramped up and the Roos will have a point to prove in 2017, with some pundits already writing-off their finals chances. 

"When we’re out there, we lay it on all the line," Higgins said. 

"There’s no stepping back because there’ll be no stepping back when the games begin."