GEELONG is one step closer to a top-four finish, hauling in a 39-point deficit to defeat North Melbourne by 15 points at Marvel Stadium. 

It's effectively season over for the fast-starting Roos, who are now out of the race for a wildcard spot after the 19.11 (125) to 17.8 (110) defeat.

KANGAROOS v CATS Full match coverage and stats

North Melbourne's AFLW premiership flag was unfurled between the AFLW and AFL games, and the men got off to the hottest of starts, kicking two goals within the first two minutes.

Far from an easy kill ahead of finals, Geelong didn't even hit the scoreboard until the 12th minute, and it was the Roos talls doing the damage under the roof, with Nick Larkey and Jack Darling finishing with nine goals between them.

They were dominating the stoppages, at one point leading the clearance count 18-4 as Paul Curtis' first – after a stellar contested mark – took his side out to a shock 31-point lead.

It was a simply scintillating seven-goal first term that resulted in a 38-point lead at the first break, driven on the back of a stunning dominance in the middle of the field, with Finn O'Sullivan, Harry Sheezel, Jy Simpkin and even ruck Tristan Xerri doing the damage at ground level.

Patrick Dangerfield didn't touch the ball (albeit playing forward), Oisin Mullin had two touches, James Worpel had three and Tom Atkins four in that first quarter.

But as quickly as North Melbourne had built the lead, it was whittled away with an equally stunning nine-goal Geelong second term.

The clearance count began to balance out, and Geelong started to effectively implement a short-kick game that left the Roos a step behind the pace, and the 39-point lead became a seven-point Geelong advantage at half-time.

North Melbourne's disposal out of its back 50 had become messy, and the Cats were able to rack up the forward-half turnovers, with ruck Mitch Edwards kicking his first two career goals.

After the wild momentum swings of the first half, the third term was much more tense, with the teams trading goals, but Geelong managing to maintain a lead until the final few minutes of the term and Cooper Trembath's third.

He hasn't been known for his goalkicking heroics in his decorated career, but Mark Blicavs was a constant threat in attack, booting three, while Tanner Bruhn's drive off half-back (28 disposals) and Bailey Smith (34) through the middle was key to the Cats' win.

Harry Sheezel's season is likely to have come to an end a week early, suffering a cheekbone injury in the second quarter.

The Cats will be sweating on a few injuries to Ollie Wiltshire and Worpel, finishing with three on the bench.

Third-string's third-term heroics
North Melbourne's tall forward stocks mean that Cooper Trembath can sneak up on some teams, who have their hands full with Nick Larkey and Jack Darling. The high-flying forward plucked from local footy had a superb third quarter, kicking three goals – the last of which was an excellent set shot from a tight angle – to drag the Roos back into the game and a one-point lead at three-quarter time.

Experience rises to the top
Geelong had appeared to have nearly sewn the game up when Patrick Dangerfield kicked his side's third of the fourth quarter, but there was another twist in North Melbourne's tale. Jack Darling and Nick Larkey kicked their fourth each, cutting the margin to just three points halfway through the term. It was a scoreless game of ping-pong for the next 10 minutes, before Ollie Dempsey took a strong mark back with the flight and pushed out the lead to a much safer nine points.

NORTH MELBOURNE       7.2     9.3      14.5      17.8 (110)
GEELONG                        1.0    10.4     13.10    19.11 (125)

GOALS
North Melbourne: Larkey 5, Darling 4, Trembath 3, Simpkin 2, Sheezel, Curtis, Banch
Geelong: Polkinghorne 3, Mannagh 3, Blicavs 3, Neale 2, Edwards 2, Dangerfield 2, Humphries, O.Henry, Dempsey, Close

BEST
North Melbourne: Simpkin, O'Sullivan, Larkey, Xerri, Darling, Trembath
Geelong: Bruhn, Smith, Blicavs, Dempsey, Humphries, Stewart

INJURIES
North Melbourne: Sheezel (cheekbone)
Geelong: Worpel (leg, TBC), Wiltshire (TBC)

Crowd: 35,529 at Marvel Stadium