North Melbourne has reaffirmed their superiority at Blundstone Arena with a comprehensive 40-point victory over West Coast, giving themselves a sniff at a September appearance in the process.
The Roos were prolific in the contested possessions (173-148) and were headed superbly by Paul Ahern (37 possessions, 22 contested, 12 clearances) and Bun Cunnington (39 possessions, 22 contested) in the 12.9 (81) to 6.5 (41) victory.
While West Coast's defence in Jeremy McGovern and Tom Barrass stood tall in the opening half, North managed to work past the Eagles' eight-man defence, booting seven goals to one in the second half.
With the typical Blundstone breeze noticeably absent, both sides only managed to squeeze through a combined three goals in the first term, with the visitors coming away with a one-goal advantage.
But North certainly had their opportunities, and while their forward 50 pressure in the game's initial stages was commendable - with two tackles inside the 50m arc - only managed 1.4 for the term.
The situation became increasingly frustrating for the Roos through the defensive spares in Tom Barrass and Jeremy McGovern, who picked off several of their long bombs forward and took to double-teaming Ben Brown.
West Coast further stifled North Melbourne's stars throughout the term, with Mark Hutchings keeping 200-gamer, Shaun Higgins, to two touches.
Jack Ziebell finally managed to push through the first of the game at the eight-minute mark of the quarter, his major coming off the back of a terrific intercept mark along the wing from Majak Daw.
The goal nevertheless was the product of a scrappy burst forward, a trait which remained with North for much of the quarter, while the Eagles seemed to have more time in crafting their entries thanks to their brilliant set-up behind the play.
Although dominating the inside 50s 17-8 and leading the contested possessions by 19, the Roos were left mostly unrewarded on the scoreboard, while West Coast subsequently thrived - despite the two extra North defenders down back - with Mark LeCras and Willie Rioli converting.
With Rioli's major closing out the term, the Eagles took a slender two-point lead at quarter-time, yet still had much work to do to overcome their staunch opposition.
While West Coast looked far more composed in the early stages of the second quarter and booted three goals as a result, North wrestled back momentum in the latter half, slotting four majors and smacking their opposition all over the ground.
Despite both sides exchanging goals through Jamie Cripps and Mason Wood within the first few minutes of play, the Eagles had a firm handle on the game the opening passages.
The visitors' defence continued to hold firm, intercepting North's thumping kicks into the forward 50 - an ineffective tactic by the Roos which was further compounded their inability to hang onto makrs thanks to the greasy ball.
West Coast's efficiency moving inside 50 compared to that of their opposition stood marked, with Rioli strolling into a vacant forward line to jag his second, before Nathan Vardy slotted his first in his 50th match to inflict further pain on the ineffectual Roos.
With the situation threatening to get ugly for North, Jy Simpkin finally eased the pressure off the home side at the 20-minute mark of the term, before Brown got involved in the action and sliced the margin to single figures.
North's exceptional skills in the contested possessions - led by Ahern (13 at half-time) - and groundballs further plagued the Eagles' game, with the home side cruising over the top of them in the final minutes of the term.
As Todd Goldstein soon made it three goals in a row, the Roos managed to regain the lead by three points; a lead which they held onto up until half-time.
Although it didn't take West Coast long to snatch back the lead in the third term, North Melbourne responded fiercely, piling on a further four goals to stun their rivals.
A classy snap from Elliot Yeo put the Eagles on the board first, but as the Roos' young midfield in Ahern and Jed Anderson - alongside the seasoned Cunnington - came to the fore, a win for the visitors became increasingly unlikely.
With the home side overrunning the visitors in the contested possession count, the figure continued to balloon out of control, alarming Adam Simpson's men as the home side stormed onward.
North managed to scrap their way forward to a rare one-on-one contest after a period of gritty football, with Ziebell booting his second and kickstarting a flurry of majors.
More promising however was the Roos' ability to mark the ball inside 50, with their five marks in the third quarter surpassing their four taken in the first half.
As Cunnington and Wood both capitalised from such circumstances, Higgins reminded the Eagles of their damaging capabilities when on the run, with the milestone man launching a massive kick from the following centre clearance.
Despite holding a 23-point advantage at three-quarter time, the Roos still had one daunting quarter to overcome in order to keep their September hopes alive.
Majors proved hard to come by in the tightly contested final term, with the home side producing the only three goals for the quarter.
As the game descended into a scrap, with neither side able to gain much ground, the Eagles passed up their opportunities in front of goal, putting through three successive behinds before North put their foot down.
Although it took almost 16 minutes, Higgins capped off his 200th game with the first major of the term, slamming the door on the Eagles as they bungled their chances to sneak back into the contest.
With Nathan Hrovat and Anderson putting through two final majors to rub salt into West Coast's wounds, the home side came away with a sound 40-point victory at their southern fortress.
While unable to leap into the top-eight as a result of their win, the Roos certainly will be banging on the door as the battle for a finals position continues to tighten up.
North Melbourne will have less than a week to prepare for another must-win clash against Brisbane at the 'Gabba, while West Coast will return to Optus Stadium on Sunday to face Fremantle in the second Western Derby of the season.
NORTH MELBOURNE 1.4 5.4 9.7 12.9 (81)
WEST COAST 2.0 5.1 6.2 6.5 (41)
GOALS
North Melbourne: Higgins 2, Ziebell 2, Wood 2, Brown, Hrovat, Goldstein, Anderson, Cunnington, Simpkin
West Coast: Rioli 2, Yeo, Vardy, Cripps, LeCras
BEST
North Melbourne: Ahern, Cunnington, Clarke, Higgins, Goldstein, Anderson, Daw
West Coast: McGovern, Yeo, Barrass, Cripps, Hutchings, Lycett
INJURIES
North Melbourne: Nil
West Coast: Nil
TALKING POINTS
1. ROOS STAY ALIVE
The Bee Gees' hit, "Stayin' Alive", must be only song blasting through the speakers at Arden St, and there's no doubt the Roos are constantly thinking of the catchy line whenever they come away from a win.
A loss today would undoubtedly have ruled North Melbourne out of finals contention, yet the Roos remain relevant for yet another week as they surge towards the top-eight.
With one month left to play, Brad Scott's men certainly have some winnable games, yet can't afford to stumble as teams like Essendon and Hawthorn continue to rise up the ranks.
Brisbane, Western Bulldogs, Adelaide and St Kilda all await, and despite the two matches interstate, North Melbourne could still be a threat come September.
2. EAGLES FEEL THE AHERN BURN
It's very rare that an eight-gamer has such a profound impact on the contest, but Paul Ahern defied the preconceptions with a blistering performance at Blundstone Arena.
Finishing his afternoon with 37 disposals - 22 of which were contested - Ahern was instrumental in the Roos' surprise win over the Eagles and was consistent all day.
The contested possessions and grit of North Melbourne was integral to seeing them over the line, with the final count resting at 173-148.
With Ahern and Ben Cunnington doing most of the heavy lifting with a combined 76 disposals, 44 contested possessions and 19 clearances, the duo will be just as pivotal in the Roos' future matches.
3. HIGGINS BRINGS UP THE 200
One of the best smooth movers in the game since Nick Dal Santo, Shaun Higgins was finally rewarded with his 200th game after an injury-ravaged career.
Since moving to the Roos in 2015, Higgins has cemented himself as one of the competition's classiest players, with today no exception.
Although kept to nine touches at half-time thanks to a solid Mark Hutchings tag, the 30-year-old worked his way back into the game, piecing together a masterful second half to end his special day with 21 disposals and two goals.
North Melbourne play well when Higgins is on fire - which this season has been more often than not - and with the Brownlow contender showing no signs of slowing down as the season comes to a head, Charlie is looking like a distinct possibility.
4. McGOVERN'S SIGNATURE GOLD FOR THE EAGLES
While the season-ending knee-injury to Nic Naitanui breaking the hearts of West Coast fans, the damage was limited slightly with the five-year re-signing of Jeremy McGovern.
The importance of the star backman was highlighted today, with McGovern playing a crucial role as one of West Coast's spare men in defence.
Blanketing Ben Brown in the opening half and chopping off North's forays forward, the key Eagle found himself with more of the ball in the latter stages of the game, finishing with 18 disposals and four contested marks.
Although powerless to stop the rampaging Roos, McGovern's freakish ability to read the play was prominent throughout the day - an asset which will be vital for the Eagles' finals campaign.
Should West Coast finish in the top-two, McGovern on Optus Stadium in a high stakes game will be a spectacle to be sure.
5. TASSIE TERRORS
Their dominance down south has been talked about for many years, and North Melbourne's strength at Blundstone Arena this season has been no different.
The Roos have won all three of their matches at their Tasmanian fortress by an average of 56 points, inclusive of a massive 85-point thumping against Carlton in round four.
Now with an impressive record of 14 wins from 18 games, North's mastery of the turf has been sublime, and with every win as good as gold for the young side, these wins away from their traditional home are nothing short of priceless.
Should a Tasmanian team ever come to fruition, there will be no such thing as a home ground advantage when the Roos are in town.
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