Geelong coach Mark Thompson believes a possible finals rematch against St Kilda could be even better than the Round 14 epic which left the Cats 'filthy' after a bruising six-point loss at Etihad Stadium on Sunday.
In a tough yet brilliant contest, the Cats were forced to mount several comebacks before ultimately falling just short thanks to a match-winning mark and goal by Saints ruckman Michael Gardiner with just over a minute remaining.
The Cats conceded the opening four goals of the match but the persistent work of Paul Chapman (40 possessions), Jimmy Bartel (37), Joel Selwood (30) and Gary Ablett (27) ensured they were able to work their way back into the contest.
While their 13-game winning streak was halted, Thompson said the loss could ultimately benefit his men.
"There are so many things we would like to do better," he said.
"The beauty about this game, it was a pretty pressurized game, we tried things that worked, we tried things that didn't work."
"They certainly have a very good knowledge of us and now we know what they are going to do against us."
"It just makes for a good rematch."
The Saints had boasted the stingiest defence in the competition this season but the Cats were still able to log 54 inside 50s, which buoyed Thompson's spirits.
"There has been a lot spoken about St Kilda's offence and their zone defence," he said.
"I thought one of the challenges we wanted to find out today was whether we could get through it."
The Cats weren't helped by the late withdrawal of mercurial forward Steve Johnson who was rested because of a hip-groin complaint.
"He has been sore for a couple of weeks and he just got to the point where (we thought) what's the point of pushing him," Thompson said.
Johnson's absence clearly hurt, although fellow forward Cameron Mooney looks to have emerged from his kicking yips.
Mooney twice drilled goals from 50m after earlier in the match giving up a 30m shot at goal in favor of passing to Jimmy Bartel, who was just inside the 50m line.
"I hope next time he just goes back and takes his shot, whether he kicks them or not is irrelevant," Thompson said.
"The fact is, if you have the ability to have a shot at goal, you should take the shot. That's what he gets paid to do."
The Cats weren't helped by a controversial decision by umpire Ray Chamberlain with the score locked and just two minutes remaining.
Rather than allow Joel Corey a set shot at goal from 50m, advantage was paid to Travis Varcoe who was quickly tackled and the ball regained by the Saints.
Thompson refused to buy into the incident.
"I am not that interested. I don't think as a club we are that worried about complaining about the umpires," he said.
Defender Harry Taylor is in doubt for Saturday night's clash against Brisbane at the Gabba after being carried from the ground with concussion while attempting to spoil Gardiner's game-winning mark.