Being a dad has made North Melbourne AFL ruckman Todd Goldstein a better footballer.

The birth of Goldstein and partner Kirsty’s second daughter, Mackenzie, last week has continued a big two years on and off the field for the 24-year-old.

The birth of their first daughter, Olivia, in late 2010 preceded a breakout 2011 season.

The athletic 201cm player stepped up in the absence of injured fellow big man Hamish McIntosh to become the club’s No.1 ruckman.

Mackenzie’s arrival has come with Goldstein again in fine form and he says it is no coincidence that increased off-field responsibility has matched his on-field rise.

“Like all young players, I probably needed to try to find and still need to keep refining a bit of maturity and responsibility in my own game,” Goldstein told AAP on Thursday.

“I think having to grow up quite fast, once we had Olivia and now Mackenzie, really has made that process quicker than it may have happened otherwise.

“You can get very focused on football and a little bit consumed by it.

“Having them as my outlet is really good.

“When you come home and you haven’t had a great game and the side’s lost or something like that, just to come home and see them, it does make you move on.”

The other notable aspect of Goldstein’s best form is that it has come with McIntosh out of the side.

Last year, Goldstein blossomed in McIntosh’s absence.

This year, he was dropped at one stage early in the season before rediscovering his best after McIntosh was again sidelined by injury.

But Goldstein believes that was just coincidence.

“It just happened that I was in a bit of a slump at the start of the season,” Goldstein said.

“It’s going to take time to get us both working well together, because he’s been out for 18 months pretty much now, so he’s missed a fair bit of footy.

“We can definitely both play – it’s just about being in form.”

The Kangaroos are hoping to continue their strong form against the struggling Western Bulldogs on Saturday, but Goldstein said North were not reading much into the Dogs’ recent poor performances.

“You can probably get yourself a false sense of security and they can really give you a shock,” he said.