While North Melbourne loss to Geelong on Saturday night didn’t ‘fit the template’ of previous defeats according to Brad Scott, it didn’t stop the media from criticising the performance.

A lack of discipline and poor scoring the reason for the disappointing result.

Rohan Connolly – The Age
“North Melbourne had briefly looked like it might pose a serious threat, casting aside its shocking inaccuracy of a first half in which it kicked 3.10, getting a big lift out of the previously subdued Lindsay Thomas, and when Petrie converted a sizzler of a pass from Ziebell, clearly in the ascendancy.

“North had a real workhorse in Levi Greenwood, arguably the only four-quarter performer,  a decent contributor in  Thompson on Hawkins, a star early in ruckman Todd Goldstein, who was not only winning the hit-outs but racking up the sort of touches you’d expect of those roving to him.

“But the Roos got a rare quiet one from Harvey, those couple of off-the-play frees making this evening an unusually poor one for him.

“They couldn’t hit targets enough and early on, certainly not that imaginary one between the two goalposts.”

While the umpiring was controversial in the eyes of many fans, Connolly implored them not to make them the issue. He believes several player brain fades should be highlighted.

“But North fans should also ask themselves why a player with the experience of Brent Harvey even put himself at risk of conceding a free kick with a couple of unnecessary actions well behind play. Or why Majak Daw wasted his time giving Shane Kersten a shove in the goal-square when he should have been concentrating on the shot from Joel Selwood about to come his way. Of course the Roos could also ponder some lamentable goal kicking which at one stage had them 3.10.”

Others saw it as a game of inches and too many errors cost the Roos.

Glenn McFarlane – Herald Sun
“North Melbourne coach Brad Scott knows that as much as anyone, and while the Kangaroos were not a million miles off it, the accumulation of those little things meant they were never really a chance last night.

“It could have been closer, but it wasn’t, mainly because of the little things that hurt the much bigger picture for North Melbourne.

“North Melbourne tried to do the lifting work during the game, but unfortunately those little things all amounted to a hurdle just too big.”

North’s inability to stop the Cats’ run also hurt according to McFarlane.

“Take the Kangaroos’ inability to deal with the counter-attack, where the likes of best-afield Allen Christensen and the ever-dangerous Steven Motlop found space on far too many occasions across half-forward.

“Some had felt as if North Melbourne’s speed might have been enough to challenge Geelong, but as it turned out, it was the complete opposite. The fleet-of-foot Cats proved too damaging in the end."

One common theme and a constant positive was Levi Greenwood, highlighted by McFarlane.

“This loss not due to the ‘bad Roos’ turning up, more a failure to execute and some costly lapses of discipline. Greenwood battled hard.”

“Levi Greenwood was North Melbourne’s best player, but he had too few to help him out. Sam Gibson and Ryan Bastinac worked hard, while Todd Goldstein was impressive early as he fought to give his team a solid start.”