North Melbourne has ended its season on a positive note and given Jarrad Waite a fitting farewell match, quelling St Kilda's second half resurgence to ultimately emerge victorious by 23 points at Etihad Stadium.
Despite the Roos being well in front with six goals in the opening term, St Kilda steadily clawed their way back into the contest, with Jack Steven (32 disposals) and Jack Steele (35) bringing the Saints within three goals during the third term.
While much of the focus from today's match was centred on whether Ben Brown could jump Jack Riewoldt in the Coleman Medal tally, the North Melbourne cult hero was only able to secure three goals, losing the count by four.
Trent Dumont served as the Roos' primary ball-winner (38 touches), yet the three-goal finale from Waite was undoubtedly the highlight of the final home and away match of 2018.
A blistering six-goal start from North Melbourne had the Saints under all sorts of pressure early on, with the Roos close to unchallenged as they ran over the top of their opposition.
Brown got the ball rolling for North in the opening minutes, securing his first major in an attempt to snatch the Coleman Medal off Jack Riewoldt, who held a seven-goal lead over his North Melbourne rival.
A rare goal from Sam Gilbert put the Saints on the board, but it would be one of the few highlights for Alan Richardsons' men, as Shaun Higgins jagged one back for the Roos in equally classy fashion.
North Melbourne soon began to pile on the pain, with a major to Jy Simpkin accompanying three successive Jack Ziebell goals as the St Kilda defence crumbled.
The Saints' inability to block up the free space proved to be detrimental, with the Roos generating twice the number of uncontested possessions (40-84), 19 entries forward, 13 scoring shots and eight marks inside 50 - their 6.7 (43) scoreline exceptionally fortunate for St Kilda.
While a Jack Billings long bomb highlighted the improved fluency with ball in hand, Jack Steven emphasised it best, with his trademark explosive pace and clearance work causing North Melbourne problems all day.
A brilliant Ben Paton second effort and goal reduced the damage in the term's final stages, with the margin resting at 22 points at the quarter-time.
North Melbourne's impressive run continued going into the second quarter, with another five goals putting St Kilda in disarray, yet a three-goal effort from the home side prevented an early blowout.
Jarryn Geary threaded the first of the term after nine minutes of play, before Brown did one better with an incredible shot from the pocket while on the run seconds later.
Although Mason Wood made it two North goals in just over a minute, the most uplifintg major undoubtedly came off the boot of Jarrad Waite, who added a goal to his name in his final match.
It would be Wood's last impact for the game, with the injury-ravaged forward sidelined with a hamstring injury midway through the quarter.
Scott Thompson too was thought to have been sidelined after going down with a knee complaint, but although returning to the field moments later found himself in trouble of a different kind.
His late clip to the back of Jack Steele's head - an action which gifted the Saints a goal - put the veteran defender on report, and subsequently served as a catalyst for St Kilda's lift in pressure.
While grubby kicks out of defence generally remained a hallmark of the Saints' second quarter, Steven's 19 touches and constant breaking of lines drove the his side forward, resulting in one final major to Jack Sinclair.
Despite clawing their way back, Trent Dumont and Brown undid all their hard work, with the latter's major kicked in unconventional - or possibly accidental - fashion, after the North spearhead managed to slam the ball onto his boot midway through a tackle.
The incredible goal not only put Brown four behind Riewoldt, but took the margin to 35 points at half-time, with North Melbourne, for the most part, in full control of proceedings.
Yet the third term saw a massive swing in momentum, with St Kilda ramping up their intensity to accumulate an impressive five-goal term, with North Melbourne left in their wake with three of their own.
Steven once again got off to a dynamic start in the third term, utilising his breakneck speed to burn past several North defenders and put the Saints on the board just a few minutes into the quarter.
While goals to Majak Daw and Todd Goldstein steadied the Roos, St Kilda suddenly emerged, slotting the next four goals through Steele, Steven, Tim Membrey and Rowan Marshall to dramatically reduce the margin.
St Kilda's clearance work in particular was a defining feature of the term, and led by Steven, won the clearance count 14-2 for the term.
A last-gasp Nathan Hrovat put a dampener on what was otherwise a much-improved quarter for the Saints, with just 23 points at three-quarter time.
Both sides battled hard in the last quarter, yet each managed to score three majors apiece, with neither able to attain a true grip on the game.
A flurry of behinds opened the final term, before the evergreen Waite kicked true after five minutes of play, taking his tally to two in his final match.
As majors to Membrey and Jack Lonie reduced the gap even further, some Todd Goldstein magic from the pocket whipped the North Melbourne faithful into a frenzy.
It only got better for the Shinboners, with North Melbourne's fluidity in moving the ball from the back end resulting in Waite strolling into a vacant goal square to close out his career with three majors.
A suspected shoulder injury to Dumont in the dying moments put a sour note on what was otherwise a solid final quarter from the Roos, before Jack Newnes pegged one back for the Saints.
Fittingly, Waite ended the game with ball in hand, and although his shot after the siren hit the post, the star forward took the Roos to a 23-point victory, putting them in ninth position on the ladder at the conclusion of season.
ST KILDA 3.3 6.4 11.6 14.10 (94)
NORTH MELBOURNE 6.7 11.9 14.11 17.5 (117)
GOALS St Kilda: Steele 2, Steven 2, Membrey 2, Lonie, Billings, Marshall, Sinclair, Geary, Newnes, Paton, Gilbert North Melbourne: Waite 3, Brown 2, Ziebell 3, Goldstein 2, Wood, Dumont, Higgins, Daw, Simpkin, Hrovat BEST St Kilda: Steven, Steele, Ross, Webster, Pierce, Gilbert
North Melbourne: Dumont, Waite, Brown, Higgins, Goldstein, Cunnington
INJURIES
St Kilda: Nil
North Melbourne: Wood (hamstring), Dumont (shoulder)
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