NORTH Melbourne has stretched the gap between itself and top-eight challenger St Kilda to three games, all but sealing its finals spot with a 23-point win at Etihad Stadium on Saturday night.

In an historic match that saw champion Brent Harvey break the all-time VFL/AFL games record, the Kangaroos kicked away from the Saints to win 12.13 (85) to 8.14 (62).  

Full match coverage and stats

In an underwhelming contest marred by poor skills, the Kangaroos finally found their groove in the fourth quarter to notch back-to-back wins for the first time since round nine.

They held a slight edge over their opponents for the first three quarters, but forward trio Drew Petrie, Lindsay Thomas and Ben Brown all stood up in the fourth term to open up a 40-point lead.

Harvey looked like going goalless on his big night, but after Thomas took a spectacular mark 15m from goal, 'Boomer' crept up next to his teammate and received the handball to get on the scoreboard.

Five talking points: North Melbourne v St Kilda

Late goals to Josh Bruce, who endured a nightmare night and was on the end of some questionable umpiring decisions, cut the margin and would have left the inaccurate Saints wondering what could have been.  

A record crowd between the clubs of 44,287 turned out to watch Harvey overtake Michael Tuck's record and the 38-year-old ran out in long sleeves in the warm-up as a nod to the Hawthorn great.

The 38-year-old marvel, who started his career in 1996, maintained his perfect record in milestone games, from his 50th to his 400th and including his 312th, when he overtook premiership teammate Glenn Archer's club record.

He was carried from the ground by teammates Drew Petrie and Michael Firrito through a guard of honour from both sets of players.  

"It’s a good feeling with all the family there," Harvey said after the match. 

"I felt in control of the game and the week but it’s good that it’s over now. It’s a fairly big milestone and got recognised really well by the football club.

"The whole objective though was to get the four points and we certainly came and played some really good footy tonight."

Petrie was superb for the victors, finishing with 12 marks and two goals and crashing packs all night.

His form takes on even more significance after forward line teammate Jarrad Waite had his night ended by a hip problem that continues to haunt him.  

Midfielder Ben Cunnington (26 possessions and eight clearances) was outstanding, while Jamie Macmillan (31 and seven rebound 50s) and Sam Gibson (28 and four inside 50s) were also important.  

How the fans saw it: North Melbourne v St Kilda

Ruckman Todd Goldstein won his ruck battle with Tom Hickey and showed improved signs in the run to finals after battling with a knee issue.

Coach Brad Scott was buoyed by his team's return to form in the past fortnight, with wins coming against Collingwood and the Saints when both were on winning runs.

"St Kilda certainly weren’t going to roll out the red carpet for 'Boomer' … they were certainly very respectful of him, but they were there to get the job done as well," Scott said. 

"They pressured really well and we needed to match and try to exceed that pressure, and it turned into a bit of a scrap.

"But I think you need to be able to win those games because that’s what high pressure finals look like."

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Harvey's night started with a shake of the hand from opponent Leigh Montagna, and from there he was off, racking up seven of his 24 possessions in the first quarter. 

His team was scratchy, however, with simple misses from Thomas and Waite undoing the hard work of the midfielders.     

It was a trend that set in for the rest of the first half, with the Kangaroos going into attack 17 times in the second quarter for a measly return of 2.3.

The Saints were no better in a poor first half and needed to find a way to get on top in the midfield, losing the clearance battle 20-9 in the first half.

They improved that to 34-26 by the final siren but never had any real ascendency in the middle, despite the hard work of Seb Ross (25 and four clearances) and Blake Acres (22 and three).

Their inability to win the ball at the coalface, and an equally wasteful performance in front of goal, all but ended their stunning charge back into top-eight contention. 

Coach Alan Richardson said the Saints had let any chance they had slip at the start of the fourth quarter when the Kangaroos got on a roll out of the centre square.

"We've got some guys who had been in really good form and had been really aggressive, physical onballers for us who were beaten pretty badly in that period of the game," he said.   

"We had a lot of entries and we had a lot of opportunities, but their backs certainly had the better of our forwards … and we were beaten pretty comprehensively at stoppage."

MEDICAL ROOM
North Melbourne: Waite left the ground after a bizarre moment early in the third quarter, converting a set shot before doubling over in pain. He didn't return and had a lot of work on the sidelines, with coach Brad Scott saying it looked like he had jarred his hip again.  

St Kilda: The Saints were unscathed.    

NEXT UP
The Kangaroos face the injury-ravaged Western Bulldogs at Etihad Stadium next Saturday night and could climb up the ladder with a win. The Saints face Carlton at the MCG on Sunday.  

Brent Harvey receives a guard of honour from both teams after his 427th game. Picture: AFL Media

NORTH MELBOURNE       2.4      4.7      7.8      12.13     (85)
ST KILDA                           1.4       2.7     3.10      8.14     (62)

GOALS
North Melbourne: Brown 3, Waite 2, Petrie 2, Thomas, Harvey, Macmillan, Dumont, Mullett
St Kilda: Riewoldt 2, Bruce 2, Montagna, Acres, Weller, Dunstan 

BEST
North Melbourne: Cunnington, Petrie, Macmillan, Wells, Swallow, Gibson, Brown
St Kilda: Riewoldt, Ross, Acres, Montagna, Roberton 

INJURIES
North Melbourne: Waite (hip)
St Kilda: Nil

Reports: Nil

Umpires: Bannister, Stevic, Findlay

Official crowd: 44,287 at Etihad Stadium