GOLD Coast will have to wait a little longer to break its GMHBA Stadium drought as Geelong again proved far too strong with a 24-point win in the wet on Saturday.

After kicking the first two goals of the match the Cats were never headed, running away with a strong second half to win 9.7 (61) to 5.7 (37) and entrench themselves in the top four.

In a match they played without red-hot midfielder Bailey Smith, who was a late scratching with hamstring tightness, Geelong was a little too clean, a little too well organised and a little too polished for the Suns.

Tom Stewart could have a nervous wait for the Match Review Officer findings following a fourth quarter collision with Noah Anderson that required the Suns skipper to be assisted from the field.

It was the ninth time Gold Coast has played at the venue without victory.

Max Holmes was magnificent, finishing with 40 disposals that included 12 in the pivotal third quarter when the home team put a space in the tight game.

They led by 12 points at quarter-time, seven at the half, and after the Suns got within a point early in the third, extended to 16 points by the final change.

Jostling with Holmes for the game's best player was dynamic small forward Tyson Stengle, who kicked four goals and put on an absolute clinic in how to take your chances.

With clean possessions inside 50 hard to come by, the brilliant Cat was deadly when given any skerrick of daylight.

His first goal came before half-time via a wonderful set shot from the right boundary line. He kicked two more gems in the third quarter and fittingly put the nail in the Suns’ coffin with one on the run midway through the final term.

Tom Atkins (23 disposals, eight clearances, eight tackles), Gryan Miers (26) and Mark O’Connor, who did a fine job to limit Anderson to 19 touches before his late departure, were also important.

Jack Henry led a backline that often outnumbered Gold Coast and thwarted many of its 51 inside 50s.

The Suns too often hastily bombed the ball ahead when their forwards were behind their opponent or facing multiple numbers.

They battled mighty hard in the tough conditions, but the loss is their second straight and drops them to an 8-4 win-loss record ahead of their bye.

An incident for the MRO
Match Review Officer Michael Christian will certainly take a look at a fourth quarter incident involving Geelong’s Tom Stewart. With the ball bouncing in Gold Coast’s defensive 50, Stewart and Suns skipper Noah Anderson approached it from opposite directions. As they came together, Stewart braced for impact, causing a heavy collision that sent Anderson to the turf. He lay there for a few seconds before play was stopped and he was assisted from the field. Anderson did not return in the final 10 minutes of the game.

Bailey Smith’s late withdrawal
It's not unusual for Geelong to make a late change, but this one had a little extra something, with red-hot Bailey Smith replaced an hour before the first bounce. Smith was withdrawn with what the Cats described as "hamstring tightness", seemingly a carryover from an incident late in last Sunday’s win over West Coast. Smith, who leads the AFL Coaches Association award, warmed up before turning to the trainers to indicate he wasn’t quite right.

GEELONG      2.2       4.4       6.7       9.7 (61)
GOLD COAST            0.2       3.3       4.3       5.7 (37) 

GOALS
Geelong: Stengle 4, Atkins, Humphries, Close, Dempsey, Miers
Gold Coast: King, Rowell, Long, Walter, Humphrey 

BEST
Geelong: Holmes, Atkins, Stengle, Miers, Henry, O’Connor
Gold Coast: Jeffrey, Rowell, Powell, Humphrey, Fiorini 

INJURIES
Geelong: Neale (ankle)
Gold Coast: Anderson (Chest) 

LATE CHANGES
Geelong: Bailey Smith (hamstring) replaced by Ted Clohesy
Gold Coast: Ethan Read (tactical) replaced by Sean Lemmens 

SUBSTITUTES
Geelong: Mitch Duncan (replaced Neale in the second quarter)
Gold Coast: Ben Ainsworth (replaced Leo Lombard in the third quarter) 

Crowd: 29,502 at GMHBA Stadium