GEELONG'S speedy young midfielders could hold the key to the Cats' hopes of progressing deep into the finals.
Allen Christensen, who missed the first half of the season following back surgery, was best on ground in the win over North Melbourne on Saturday night, while Mitch Duncan, Steven Motlop and Josh Caddy ran their opponents ragged and combined for seven goals.
Jordan Murdoch also used his pace to great effect to not only create scoring chances but also pressure the Kangaroos defenders.
"I thought we were better in a lot of areas tonight than we have been for a lot of the year," coach Chris Scott said after his team's 32-point win.
"But some of our young players with speed on the outside make us a different team, particularly at Etihad, to the one we've been.
"At the moment, it's only one game, but they're complementing our guys who are pretty good on the inside."
Geelong's conservative management of Christensen, who played two games in the VFL before returning to the AFL team in round 14, is certainly paying dividends.
He finished the victory over the Roos with 29 disposals, five clearances and a goal, proving that his back problem is no longer hindering him at all.
"We knew early in the pre-season that he was going to have a decent lay-off with that injury," Scott said.
"We were just determined to make sure that he was absolutely right when he came back.
"There's no point having him out there half-fit, because fully fit he's crucial to what we're doing."
Motlop, who missed the early rounds of the season after needing surgery to fix a bout of knee tendonitis, seemed troubled by knee soreness at stages, but still managed to play out the game.
"The information we've got from the medical staff at this stage is that it's not a problem," Scott said.
Geelong has struggled in second halves of recent matches, but the Cats made a statement by kicking five goals to two in the last quarter against North.
Not that the coach was making too much of that.
"A lot's made of the numbers, looking for patterns, and we don't stick our head in the sand and say it doesn't matter," Scott said.
"But we're also not sitting here saying, 'See, we finished the game well. We're fine.'"
Many pundits have been writing the Cats off as a premiership threat, yet they find themselves equal-top of the ladder with the Sydney Swans.
"I'm not sure whether everyone thinks the ladder's a fair reflection in terms of where we sit, and it doesn't really worry me too much," Scott said.
"I can't help but smile when you say people have written us off, because it just doesn't matter.
"I read some garbage, and there's a lot of garbage written and said about us, I reckon."
Geelong will face another big test next weekend when it comes up against top-four rivals Fremantle.
The Cats have lost four of their past five games against the Dockers.
"It's a crucial stage of the season and the contenders are playing each other in the run home," Scott said.
"Do we need extra motivation? I'd be staggered (if we did). Be a good game though.
"There's a need for us to play well and keep improving our game and beat another contender.
"If they win the mind-games and we win the game, I'll be OK with that."
