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NORTH MELBOURNE'S breakthrough 17-point win over Geelong at Etihad Stadium on Sunday night was one coach Brad Scott had been looking for the past two seasons.
Winless and, worse still, uncompetitive against top-four teams since Scott took over in 2010, North buried that hoodoo in emphatic fashion with a 20.11 (131) to 16.18 (114) win.
Scott took over at North at the start of the 2010 season and said the win against the Cats was the equal of any during his reign. It was also the Kangaroos' first win against a top-four team since they defeated St Kilda in round 21, 2009.
But for Scott the most significant thing to come out of the win was the positive reinforcement it would have on his team.
"I'm just really pleased for our players who have worked really worked hard over the last couple of years to try and play a certain style that we've been working on, that we think is going to be capable of sustaining finals-type intensity and finals-type pressure," Scott said.
"But it's difficult when you're working really hard at something and you're sitting in (a press conference) after a loss and talking about just continuing to work on a style of play - it sounds clichéd and it sounds trite when you've lost.
"But it is pleasing to sit in here after a good win like that and sit here pretty confident that our players' self-belief is growing. They've got real confidence in what we're doing."
The Kangaroos beat the Cats at their own game, outmuscling them at the clearances, spreading harder with their run, applying more pressure when they didn't have the ball. And, in perhaps the most positive sign for Scott, North executed its skills more efficiently around the ground and in front of goals.
But the win did not come without a minor scare. After leading by 42 points at the seven-minute mark of the final term, the Cats came back hard and whittled that down to 17 points when defender Harry Taylor kicked a goal at the 24-minute mark.
But the Cats couldn't get any closer than that, with goals from Kangaroos substitute Kieran Harper and vice-captain Jack Ziebell - in his first game for the season after completing a suspension - sealing the win.
Not that surprised Scott. He said the Cats were a "super team" and admitted that their six-day break leading into the game (one fewer than North) and the greater intensity of their previous match against Hawthorn (North thrashed Greater Western Sydney by 129 points) had been factors in North's win.
But Scott's twin brother, Geelong coach Chris, refused to accept the Cats' preparation as an excuse.
"Our skill-level through the middle of the ground was poor," Chris Scott said.
"We pride ourselves on our skills under pressure and ... tonight it wasn't good enough.
"We'll review it really hard and we won't let anyone off the hook, including ourselves [the coaches], and we'll make sure we bounce back next week."
North jumped the Cats from the opening bounce, registering the first four scoring shots of the game before the Cats opened their account.
Unfortunately, for the Kangaroos three of those scores were behinds, but they were able to maintain their early intensity. It carried them to a 20-point lead into quarter-time, a lead they extended to 21 points at half-time and to a seemingly safe 36 at three-quarter time.
Former skipper Brent Harvey was outstanding for the Kangaroos with his run and creative ball use through the midfield. The 33-year-old finished with 38 disposals.
Senior midfielder Daniel Wells was also instrumental in North's win, especially early in the game. He faded out somewhat in the second half, but still finished with 31 possessions.
But North's brigade of emerging young players were almost as impressive. Midfielder Ryan Bastinac had 26 possessions and kicked four goals, Ziebell had 27 and also kicked four, while Sam Wright performed an outstanding shut-down job on elite Cats forward Steve Johnson, holding him to just one behind.
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Despite seeming flat after coming off a six-day break following their round two win against Hawthorn, the Cats were their usual courageous selves, refusing to concede.
Harry Taylor shut North's main target in attack, Drew Petrie, out of the game, keeping him to just one behind, while James Podsiadly was equally impressive in attack, kicking 5.3 on Scott Thompson.
Meanwhile, Cats stars Joel Selwood, James Kelly and Jimmy Bartel were instrumental in their team's late fightback.
VIDEOS: Sam Wright and Matt Campbell interviews | Brad Scott press conference | Ziebell match-winner | Harper great goal | Join in the Chorus | Liam Anthony's long goal | Hamish's redemption | Match highlights | Lindsay Thomas goal from boundary | Thomas courage
NORTH MELBOURNE 4.5 9.5 16.8 20.11 (131)
GEELONG 1.3 5.8 9.14 16.18 (114)
GOALS
North Melbourne: Edwards 4, Bastinac 4, Ziebell 4, Adams 2, McIntosh 2, Anthony, Thomas, Harvey, Harper
Geelong: Podsiadly 5, Hawkins 4, Motlop 2, Gillies, Horlin-Smith, Byrnes, Taylor, Guthrie
BEST
North Melbourne: Harvey, Bastinac, Wells, Ziebell, Wright Edwards, Firrito, McIntosh, Swallow, Delaney
Geelong: Podsiadly, Taylor, Selwood, Bartel, Kelly, T.Hunt
INJURIES
North Melbourne: Nil
Geelong: Andrew Mackie (cut lip)
Reports: Nil
Umpires: Stevic, Jennings, Mollison
Crowd: 29,630 at Etihad Stadium
The views in this article are those of the author and not necessarily those of the club
