Stopping the likes of Patrick Dangerfield and Joel Selwood is tough even at the best of times.

When Andrew Swallow is concussed in the first quarter, as well as having Ben Cunnington and Nick Dal Santo hobbled by injuries early on, the task becomes even tougher.

That was the equation confronting North at quarter time on Saturday night. Although the scoreboard was essentially even – four points the margin Geelong’s way – the Roos’ midfield had already been ‘decimated to a certain degree’, as Brad Scott admitted post-match.

North then attempted to control possession in the second quarter. With the coaching staff potentially knowing the clearance battle would be too tough, the setup when North did get possession was to maintain it by foot, picking out targets on a march down the field.

“We found a way to score in the second quarter and get back in front,” Scott said post-match.

Even though North lost the clearance count 13-6 in the second quarter, the plan worked well when it was in possession. The Roos went at 83 per cent disposal efficiency for the term, an extremely high number.

North had 36 uncontested marks in the second quarter, compared to just 10 for Geelong. Combine it with taking chances in the forward 50 – 4.1 to 1.5 for the term – and it was the recipe for a lead at half time.

“But we just couldn’t sustain that against some really strong Geelong performances,” Scott said.

“We had to find a way to press on in the second half, and we just couldn’t find that way.

“We were trying to set up a system to attack in the second half, but we just couldn’t cover the ground.”

While North controlled the game by foot in the second term, it was still able to move relatively quickly.

That changed in the third term, for two key reasons. One, Geelong was able to capitalise on its clearance dominance and put some scoreboard pressure on, changing the feel of the game.

And two, when North did gain possession, the Cats often forced the ball long to contests, stopping any movement. As Jamie Macmillan described:

“In the second half we were pretty stagnant and played into their hands.

“They’ve (the Cats’ defence) got great intercept marks down there and we were basically putting it on their heads.”

Conceding seven goals in the third term meant a 15-point deficit with one quarter to play.

North started the final term with an extra defender behind the play, potentially looking to use the number when it gained possession in the back half.

However, Geelong quickly recognised the tactic and opted to maintain possession. Where North had controlled the uncontested marks in the second term, the Cats did likewise in the last – 26 to 11 the tally.

Ultimately the search for a winning combination proved futile, but not for lack of effort.

There was also constant chopping and changing through the centre to try and find the best group of midfielders able to take it up to the Cats.

It was reflected in the numbers showing which Roos attended centre bounces.

“We had to take our best player in Sam Gibson off the wing and try to invent another midfielder,” Scott explained.

“In the end we were putting small forwards in the centre bounce to try and get numbers through there.

“We felt with the numbers the way they were, in terms of personnel, if we really ‘rob Peter to pay Paul’ just to shut (Dangerfield) down alone, we were really going to struggle on the other side of the contest.”

Before Saturday night, Gibson had been at just six centre bounces for the year. Against the Cats he was there for 10, more than doubling his total.

It was almost the same for Brent Harvey. His total stood at seven before last week; that was boosted by another four. Lindsay Thomas even attended his first two centre bounces of the season.

While there was a clamour for more change, others were doing their jobs effectively at each end of the ground – Luke McDonald for instance was effectively minimising Steven Motlop’s influence on the game.

Even though the changes didn’t bring a positive result against Geelong, it could provide some joy down the road, knowing there are others who can give the first-choice midfielders a rest if needed.