A five-goal final term has lifted North Melbourne to a 38-point win over Gold Coast to maintain its unbeaten start to the AFL season.

The Kangaroos led at every change against an undersized Suns before their final-term blitz blew the Suns away in an 18.11 (119) to 11.15 (81) victory.

The win means the Roos have won their opening five matches of a season for the first time since 2005.

Ben Brown booted four goals for the visitors, one of six multiple goalkickers for the free-scoring Roos.

Shaun Higgins kicked three majors while Jarrad Waite, Todd Goldstein, Drew Petrie and Lindsay Thomas also bagged two goals each.

The Suns began coach Rodney Eade's 600th match as a coach or player without key defenders Steven May (suspended) and Rory Thompson (ankle).

Twice, the hosts managed to get within three points of the Kangaroos but, both times, the visitors seized back the initiative with a flurry of fast goals.

Five talking points: Gold Coast v North Melbourne

North Melbourne's pressure was outstanding, forcing the Suns into a number of costly turnovers.

"I'm rapt with 5-0, you couldn't be happier with that," Kangaroos coach Brad Scott said.

"I feel that we're building into our season.

"We're playing good footy but not our very, very best.

"What has been very good is our pressure.

"If you base your game around good defence and good pressure, our guys have never had too many issues scoring, our issues have really come from leaking too many goals."

Full match coverage and statistics

Coleman Medal contender Tom Lynch continued his hot start to the year with four more goals to take his season tally to 22. 

Peter Wright, in his first start of the year, also booted three goals in a good performance by the two-metre forward.

Coach Rodney Eade described it as a frustrating game.

"We just made a lot of errors tonight," Eade said.

"We hung in there pretty well at times considering the errors and got it back in the second and third quarter to three points, but the errors mounted, they cost us badly.

"Even with our players out I thought it was a game we could have won the way it went tonight, but we just made too many mistakes."

The Suns suffered a late blow with Adam Saad limping off with a groin injury, while captain Gary Ablett completed the match despite coming off in the opening term with a cork to his right calf.

Kangaroos' midfielder Ben Cunnington was placed on report in the second term for rough conduct on Ablett.

MEDICAL ROOM
Gold Coast captain Gary Ablett copped a corked calf early, but played the match out strongly, while Adam Saad hobbled off late in the third quarter with a groin problem. Coach Rodney Eade didn't seem too concerned with the running defender's problem though, hinting that he'd be fine for next week. "He's marvellous at getting up the next week. He's been like that a few times. He might be all right I think. We'll wait and see." The only slight niggle for the Kangaroos was tagger Ben Jacobs who picked up a shoulder problem. He played the game out and coach Brad Scott said it was minor. "(It's) a muscular-type, cork-type injury, nothing structural," he said.

NEXT UP
North Melbourne will try to keep its unbeaten start to the season alive when it plays the running Western Bulldogs at Etihad Stadium in the prime time Friday night slot. Gold Coast will look to arrest its two-game slide when it travels to play Geelong next Saturday night.

High fives all round as the Roos make it five straight wins. Photo: AFL Media

GOLD COAST                        3.4       6.10    9.13    11.15 (81)
NORTH MELBOURNE           6.4       10.8    13.10  18.11 (119)

GOALS

Gold Coast: Lynch 4, Wright 3, Ablett, Ah Chee, Grant, Rischitelli
North Melbourne: Brown 4, Higgins 3, Thomas 2, Waite 2, Petrie 2, Goldstein 2, Gibson, Macmillan, Ziebell

BEST 

Gold Coast: Lynch, Rischitelli, Ablett, Saad, Wright
North Melbourne: Goldstein, Dal Santo, Higgins, Swallow, Waite, Ziebell

INJURIES 

Gold Coast: Nil
North Melbourne: Nil

Reports: Ben Cunnington reported in second quarter for rough conduct on Gary Ablett

Umpires: Meredith, Mollison, Ryan

Official crowd: 13,351 at Metricon Stadium