"I FEEL embarrassed," Melbourne coach Dean Bailey said after the Demons' humiliating 186-point loss to Geelong at Skilled Stadium on Saturday.

There was no mincing of words in the post-match press conference as the club tried to make sense of the result, the second biggest losing margin in the game and club's history.

"The Melbourne Football Club had a really dark two hours today," Bailey said.  

Melbourne were always facing a huge challenge, taking on the Cats at Skilled Stadium where they had beaten each of the past 27 visitors. But no-one could have predicted the football carnage that took place.

Geelong kicked 20 goals in the first half to Melbourne's one. They kicked 17 goals to six in the second half. The Cats finished the game just six points short of the highest total score ever.

Bailey was at a loss to explain the performance. "We were reactionary [and] second to the ball. Every mistake we made they scored from. They moved it at lightning speed and we were unable to stop them. We tried a number of things to stop the flow and we were unable to. It was as bad as you could get, I think," he said.

Bailey did throw Jack Watts behind the ball after the first seven goals. They added Jack Trengove to make it a plus two situation in defence. But it was to no avail as Geelong just kept winning the ball and running in waves cutting through the Melbourne structure with ease. Melbourne lost its most consistent contested ball winner, Brent Moloney, to a virus at half-time after he'd been affected throughout the first half. And they were getting smashed out of the centre.

Bailey asked for effort and tried to refocus the shell-shocked group at quarter-time but things just got worse. Geelong kicked 12 goals to one in the second half and had 147 possessions to the Demons' 47 possessions. In the end the difference in the possession count was 228 with the Cats collecting 510 possessions to Melbourne's 282.

A minor rally for the first 20 minutes of the third quarter was snuffed out late in that quarter with four quick goals from the Cats and they just kept powering away.

Once the opposition gets on a roll in any sport a team can crumble, their effort sapped, the answers impossible to find. Conversely the team dominating can try things it would not normally attempt in a game if the score was tighter and when they come off the gap just becomes wider and the issue compounded. As the game went on Geelong became like a batsman on 150 while Melbourne was reduced to playing like bowlers in the hot sun carrying the old ball.

Bailey could see the things going from bad to worse from the coaches box for his players. "As each goal was scored, it nearly drained the confidence out of the group for the rest of the game and some of the goals they kicked were embarrassingly easy," he said.  

Bailey's response after the game was the only one a coach could have in such a situation. He admitted that the magnitude of the loss had the potential to fracture the group and said it would be a test for everyone to ensure that did not happen.

"The biggest challenge will be that they stay united and they have just got to work their way through [this]. There is no point pointing fingers at all," he said.

It was a message delivered to every member of the club as they crowded behind closed doors after the game.

Bailey's frank summary of the day's events was a good effort given the hurt and shock he must have been feeling. He knows that the pressure will be on the football club from all angles in the wake of the effort and did not shy away from that reality.

"I think we're all on notice. Each week you play you get scrutinised and today's game was as bad as you could get," Bailey said.

He understands that results are an important part of the picture and that he would be naïve to not think that there would be speculation about his job, particularly a coach in the last season of their contract. But he indicated his determination to continue and would not be critical of any of his players. It was, he said, his responsibility to get the players ready for next week's game.

"It's embarrassing for all of us," Bailey said.

A dark day had ended in virtual darkness. The mood was sullen as would be expected. Carlton looms next Saturday afternoon at the MCG.

"I expect a response that is reflective of the loss today. This is the opportunity to motivate and force the issue for the rest of the year and I'd like to think that is what we will be aiming for," he said.