The North Melbourne Tasmanian Kangaroos maintained their unbeaten status by just four points after a tense struggle with Melbourne at Casey Fields on Sunday.

Emma King booted her third goal to regain the lead early in the last quarter as the Kangaroos held on for a 6.2 (38) to 5.4 (34) triumph.

The rampaging Roos twice surrendered the lead in the second half before persistence handed them their fourth consecutive win.

Lively forward Aliesha Newman shot Melbourne into the lead when she kicked her second goal from a mark in the last term.

But North refused to yield and King, who had nearly 10 centimetres height advantage over Demons defender Harriet Cordner, was deemed to have been infringed in a marking contest only 20m out directly in front.

This was a contest that showcased the best of the women's game with clean disposal, fast rebound and fierce tackling between two desperate teams.

While the battle between two classy midfields, the Roos led by Emma Kearney and Jamie Stanton against Demon counterparts Elise O'Dea and Karen Paxman, was probably a dead heat, it was ultimately North's ability to convert chances inside the forward 50 that decided what was a genuine cliffhanger.

The biggest margin was the Roos' 13-point lead early in the second quarter as both teams probed to break open the contest.

Melbourne quickly erased a 10-point half-time deficit when Newman unleashed one of her trademark dashes to goal on the run. And the Demons hit the front for the first time when Tyla Hanks snapped truly three minutes later.

Typically, North hit back strongly and Moana Hope, a menacing presence up forward, took a hotly contested mark and goalled from 40m to give the Roos a narrow edge heading into the final term.

With the temperature at 32 degrees, the contest was played at a furious pace, with clean ball-handling indicative of the collective skills of both high-ranked teams.

Mo magic
As a former marquee player, Moana Hope cops more than her share of criticism and she certainly answered it this time. Hope was almost as dangerous up forward as King with her mix of strength and speed. Not only did she kick two goals herself, but she set up King's first goal with a superb baulk and spearing pass onto her tall teammate's chest. "We play her in a role that suits the team. A lot of her attributes are seen without a lot of goals and points. Today she got on the scoreboard, but we value her game on things to do with pressure acts, spoiling particularly and her leading patterns because she takes a defender up the field opens up the forward line for others," Roos coach Scott Gowans said.

Winning formula 
North Melbourne is confident teenage forward Courteney Munn will be back for next weekend's crucial clash with Adelaide. Munn, who kicked four goals on debut last round before being sidelined with a calf muscle injury, is vital to allow the ladder leaders to utilise King for ruck duties, particularly for the important centre bounce takeaways. "Emma King is imposing as a forward. The trouble is you take her out of the ruck and Kate Gillespie-Jones is an undersized ruck who does the job following up at stoppages, but she's never going to win the hitouts against the big rucks of the competition. So, it's a matter of getting the timing right. I would like to have two of her (King)," Gowans said.

Say what? 
"Good sides always find a way to win and I think we did that today. We weren't able to play the way we want to play, so we had to find a different way and we got there. But I'd say it was an unconvincing win." - North Melbourne coach Scott Gowans

MELBOURNE   1.0   2.3   4.4   5.4 (34)
NORTH MELBOURNE   1.1   4.1   5.1   6.2 (38)

GOALS
Melbourne: Newman 2, Phillips, Cunningham, Hanks
North Melbourne: Emma King 3, Hope 2, Abbatangelo

BEST
Melbourne: Paxman, Hore, Mithen, O'Dea, Pearce
North Melbourne: Kearney, Emma King, Stanton, Duffin, Hope 

Crowd: 4227 at Casey Fields, Cranbourne