GEELONG has mauled North Melbourne with a nine-goal final quarter to rack up its 15th consecutive win over the Kangaroos.

Leading by less than a goal late in the third quarter, the Cats kicked clear as Max Holmes starred in the 21.9 (135) to 13.8 (86) win at GMHBA Stadium on Saturday.

Playing off half-back and then in the midfield, Holmes was elite with 29 possessions, kicking two crucial goals in the third quarter to help spark his team.

CATS v KANGAROOS Full match coverage and stats

Despite excellent conditions, only 10 goals were scored in the first half, before the game opened up with 24 after the main break.

North's Tristan Xerri was outstanding with 26 contested possessions - an AFL record for a ruck - and 14 clearances. 

Geelong's tagging specialist Oisin Mullin restricted North star Harry Sheezel to 20 disposals, while Cats forward Shaun Mannagh kicked a game-high four goals. 

North's Jy Simpkin tagged Bailey Smith and the Cats gun was kept to 26 disposals.

Coming off a five-goal loss to Port Adelaide, the Cats looked vulnerable.

Geelong made a late change, losing Jack Henry to a foot problem and bringing in Jack Bowes, but they waltzed through the start of the match kicking the first four goals in 12 minutes to take a 23-point lead early.

It looked like it could be another long, barren trip down the highway for North.

While the scoreboard was a worry, Xerri was dominating and racked up seven clearances in the first quarter and with Simpkin keeping a tight eye on Smith, the Kangaroos steadied.

They kicked the last three goals of the term and only trailed by seven points at the first change.

The second term was a shocker - despite near-perfect conditions, there were turnovers and skill errors as North outscored Geelong by two goals to one.

North only trailed by a point at the main break, and when Colby McKercher kicked a goal in the opening minute of the third quarter, the Kangaroos led for the first time.

The game opened up in the third term and North was within four points of the home side after 27 minutes.

Then Holmes pounced on a loose ball and kicked his second goal of the quarter, but Simpkin responded to again have the Kangaroos within a goal of the lead.

Shannon Neale closed out the quarter with two goals, including one after the siren, giving the Cats a 17-point lead at the last break.

North kicked the first goal of the final quarter through Jack Darling to close to 11 points, but Geelong then piled on the goals to finish with 16.3 for the second half.

Larkey finally reaches milestone
Roos spearhead Nick Larkey entered the game sitting on 299 career goals, but the 300-goal milestone proved briefly elusive. An early set shot went begging, and another attempt drifted wide for no score, delaying the inevitable. He finally broke through early in the third term, clunking a strong mark in the goal square before calmly slotting the near-certainty to bring up his 300th. It was his only goal for the match in a quieter outing for the Roos skipper.

Roos undone by costly errors
It was death by a thousand cuts for the Roos, with basic skill errors and poor execution proving costly throughout the game. The most damaging moment came right on the three-quarter time siren. Griffin Logue missed his target in Caleb Daniel, who then casually chipped the ball off a step straight into the arms of Jeremy Cameron. Cameron wasted no time sending it inside to Shannon Neale who converted to give the Cats a then game-high 17-point lead at the final break. It opened the floodgates, with the Cats kicking eight of the first 10 goals of the final term to put the game to bed. If North can tidy up its execution, it'll be in a much stronger position to challenge more consistently.

GEELONG                    4.3   5.6   12.7   21.9 (135)
NORTH MELBOURNE   3.2   5.5   98.8   13.8 (86)

GOALS
Geelong: Mannagh 4, Cameron 3, Neale 3, Holmes 2, Martin 2, Bowes, Dangerfield, Dempsey, Guthrie, Henry, Humphries, Worpel
North Melbourne: Darling 3, Duursma 3, McKercher 2, Simpkin 2, Curtis, Larkey, Sheezel

BEST
Geelong: Holmes, Mannagh, Bruhn, O'Sullivan, Cameron, Worpel
North Melbourne: Xerri, Comben, McKercher, Davies-Uniacke, Darling, Duursma

INJURIES
Geelong: Nil
North Melbourne: Nil

LATE CHANGES
Geelong: Jack Henry (foot soreness), replaced in the selected side by Jack Bowes
North Melbourne: Nil

Crowd: TBC at GMHBA Stadium