After half-time Sydney opted to open up its forward line and isolate Hall on Josh Gibson, and Shannon Watt on Goodes. As a result, more often than not when the ball went forward, the Swans looked efficient and capable of scoring.

"All our leadership group, guys who had been around a long time, really dug in and then it lifted the intensity of everyone and then obviously some young guys … I think Kieren Jack kicked three goals," coach Paul Roos said.

"I thought Crouchy's job after half-time on Harvey was really significant, we were able to snuff Wells out a bit after half-time."

Nathan Thompson battled hard and, although the stats didn't reflect it, he worked well to try to present a forward target. The trouble was, his teammates further afield were not getting their hands on the ball.

Where North had been winning the contest with run and direct ball use, with the likes of Harvey and Wells winning plenty of the ball and driving it forward, after half-time they — and most of the Kangaroos — went missing.

Shannon Grant, in what would be his final game of AFL football, was also solid to half-time, but he too faded.

The wet didn't help David Hale, who in the previous three weeks had kicked one third of his side's goals. He ended the match with two goals, but only seven touches.

The Swans, in contrast, enjoyed winners all over the ground.

Goodes ran into form as the game went on and finished with three goals. By game's end, he looked back to his best and appeared he could have played another quarter.

The Roos were only 14 points down at three-quarter-time, but it may as well have been 14 goals. For all their endeavour early in the term with Daniel Harris working extremely hard, they could not penetrate the Swans defence and apply scoreboard pressure.

Ed Lower, who had a good game, hit the post, but soon after the Swans showed how it should be done when Hall converted to give them a match-winning break.

Jack then snapped his third of the night, and Jarred Moore and Ted Richards put the icing on the cake.

The game also provided yet another argument for further technology to be employed in goal-umpiring decisions with two howlers threatening to mar the night.

Running onto a lofted handball that was sliding through for a rushed behind, Harvey's boot struck the ball more than 20 centimetres over the line, yet he was awarded a major by the goal umpire.

That was evened up the next quarter when the goal umpire judged a Matt Campbell snap to have shaved the post when it appeared to have missed it by some distance.

SYDNEY 1.5 4.6 12.7 17.8 (110) NORTH MELBOURNE 4.1 6.4 10.5 11.9 (75)

GOALS — Sydney: Goodes 3, Hall 3, Jack 3, Moore 2, O'Keefe 2, Malceski, McVeigh, Richards, Veszpremi. North Melbourne: Grant 2, Hale 2, Harvey 2, Lower 2, Petrie, Sinclair, Thompson.

BEST — Sydney: O'Keefe, Kirk, McVeigh, Goodes, J Bolton, Buchanan, Richards. North Melbourne: Harvey, Pratt, Hale, Lower, Petrie, Gibson.

INJURIES — Sydney: Bird (groin), replaced in selected side by Veszpremi. North Melbourne: Hansen replaced in selected side by Urquhart. Hale (cut head).

UMPIRES: Vozzo, McBurney, Chamberlain.

CROWD: 19,127 at ANZ Stadium.

THE UPSHOT: Mad Monday for the Roos and retirement for veteran Shannon Grant, who would have loved to have gone out with a finals win. Sydney takes on the Bulldogs and can't be written off as having simply been making up the numbers.

HOT AND COLD: The North Melbourne midfield. To half-time it had been dominating but come the third term, Daniel Wells, with only one possession, and Brent Harvey (2) told the tale of the tape. Meanwhile, Barry Hall fired up after a slow start and was an important forward target.

TALKING POINT: The crowd. Or rather, the fact there wasn't one. Granted it was a miserable day in Sydney, with 78 millimetres of rain falling in the 24 hours prior to the game. But even so, only a pathetic 19,127 bothered to turn up. Does the Harbour City really need another team?