Police are searching for a driver who fled after a car plunged down an embankment and hit a tree at Kilmore, north of Melbourne.

A 38-year-old woman suffered significant and life-threatening injuries when the Mitsubishi smashed into a tree.

North Melbourne were condemned to an ignominious fifth consecutive bottom-two finish in 2022. However, unlike previous years, there were some signs of forward momentum for long-suffering Roos fans.