Strong midfield displays from Tom Atkins, Cam Guthrie and Patrick Dangerfield have helped Geelong throw another twist into the AFL premiership race with an emphatic 28-point victory over Melbourne.
The Cats prevailed 12.19 (91) to 9.9 (63) at a sold-out GMHBA Stadium on Thursday night, extending their winning streak to seven matches.
The result meant Geelong drew level with the reigning premiers on 12 wins and moved into top spot on the ladder with a superior percentage.
The Demons, who looked to have arrested their mid-season slump over the previous fortnight, have lost four of their last six matches.
The margin could easily have been bigger as the Cats disarmed Melbourne at stoppages and controlled the territory battle.
They dominated clearances (54-36) and inside-50s (66-46), and had 13 more scoring shots.
Atkins (21 disposals, nine clearances), Guthrie (28, six) and Dangerfield (31, nine) led the charge against one of the competition's most vaunted midfield units, holding sway in the battle with Christian Petracca, Clayton Oliver and Jack Viney.
"A lot of their good players around the clearances did some special things but I thought over the bulk of the night our work around the contest and our strength in the contest was really solid," Geelong coach Chris Scott said.
"We won't get carried away and it doesn't make us the best team in the competition because we beat them at home.
"But what it does say to our players is the things we've been working on can stand up against the very best teams."
Mitch Duncan (32 disposals), Gary Rohan and Guthrie kicked two goals each for the Cats, while Dangerfield missed chances in booting 0.4.
Jack Henry was superb in defence and Mark Blicavs' versatility was crucial as he regularly marked Petracca in the centre square and also gave Rhys Stanley a break in the ruck.
Despite their dominance, Geelong's wayward goal-kicking left the door open for the Demons, who had trailed by 20 points early in the final term but got back within a kick.
The Cats booted the final three goals of the match to eventually slam the door shut, confirming a result that marked a 111-point turnaround from the two sides' previous meeting, in last year's preliminary final.
"The team that deserved to win won," Melbourne coach Simon Goodwin said.
"They dominated time in forward half, they beat us at clearance and I think they were cleaner around contest areas.
"We'll learn a lot from this but full credit to Geelong, they got the game on their terms."
Petracca (21 disposals, three goals), Viney (35 disposals, five clearances) and Oliver (34, 10) all threatened at stages to drag the Demons over the line.
Oliver will have a thumb injury monitored before next week's clash with Port Adelaide in Alice Springs.
Geelong face another flag contender when they take on Carlton at the MCG.
