The GC SUNS had the crowd of 21,485 roaring when they jumped the Cats to lead by 20 points at quarter-time and 11 at half-time.
Rugby league convert Karmichael Hunt had the fans screaming and his teammates mobbing him when he bombed his first career goal from 55m late in the second to give the Suns the momentum going into the sheds.
But the Cats responded strongly to keep their unbeaten record in tact, kicking the final 11 goals of the match.
With a landslide 121 disposals to 84 in the third quarter, and 22 inside 50s to 10, Geelong rammed home eight goals to one.
Johnson finished with a career-best seven goals, and split the game wide open in the third when he got the better of Campbell Brown first, then Hunt, as he continually found space over the back of packs to run into open goals.
Geelong coach Chris Scott was disappointed with his team's first half.
"Gold Coast SUNS haven't been going so well, but they beat us comprehensively around the ball which is disturbing because we think that is a strength," Scott said.
"We have to improve on that performance."
In Gary Ablett's first match against his former club, the Brownlow medallist shone early, baulking and spinning away from Jimmy Bartel with his first touch and ending with 10 disposals in the first quarter as Cameron Ling and Daniel Menzel struggled to keep him in check.
As the match wore on and the GC SUNS fell behind, Ablett's influence waned but he still found plenty of the ball with 30 disposals.
James Podsiadly showed he can be effective away from Skilled Stadium, kicking four goals against a number of opponents.
Influential players?
While his coach was not so sure ("he's a good player but Steve knows we were not happy with everything he did tonight"), Steve Johnson was the player who influenced the contest the most. Seven goals, 29 disposals and 12 marks showed just how often he found space and hurt the GC SUNS. Usual suspects James Kelly (30), Paul Chapman (28) and Joel Selwood (27) also had plenty of the ball.
While Ablett led the stats sheet for Gold Coast SUNS with 30 disposals, experienced defender Nathan Bock had one of his best games for the GC SUNS. Bock had 24 disposals and spent time successfully juggling between defensive assignments as the ball continually came into their 50m zone.
What it means?
Geelong stretched their unbeaten run to nine matches despite not being at their devastating best. They had 20 less contested possessions in the first half and the scoreboard reflected the stat. But when the pressure was on, the big bodies and the big names stepped up. There were some worrying early signs in defence, but with Harry Taylor not far away that can be rectified.
The GC SUNS again showed how much potential they have by putting the competition leaders to the sword in the first half. But in a familiar tale to their last-start loss against Adelaide (where they led by four goals), they faded badly in the second half. Coach Guy McKenna said they could not train any harder and would have to fix things up mentally to be competitive for four quarters.
The next four
Geelong Cats: Western Bulldogs (Skilled Stadium); Hawthorn (MCG); St Kilda (MCG); Adelaide (Skilled Stadium).
Gold Coast SUNS: West Coast (Patersons Stadium); North Melbourne (Metricon Stadium); Hawthorn (Aurora Stadium); Western Bulldogs (Metricon Stadium).
Dream Team highlight?
Geelong Cats: Steve Johnson’s ($390,200) career-best haul of seven goals, coupled with 29 touches, gave him a game-high 171 Dream Team points, but he was not alone with James Kelly (128), Cameron Ling (111), James Podsiadly (110), Mathew Stokes (110) and Joel Selwood (116) all registering triple-figure scores.
Gold Coast SUNS: Jared Brennan (116) and Michael Rischitelli (102) showed they were just as comfortable playing on the new Metricon Stadium surface as they were at the Gabba, while Danny Stanley ($233,600, 98 points) and Zac Smith ($244,100, 88 points) once again showed their worth for the Suns. Meanwhile, Karmichael Hunt’s first AFL goal helped him to 41 points, a handy return for his price ($86,900).
Aesthetics
Metricon Stadium passed its first test with flying colours on Saturday night. Gold Coast has decked out most of its seating in red and most of its overhead sails in yellow to give it a real home feel. Pre-match they rolled out the yellow carpet in a number of directions to a centre circle with the club's logo to represent the sun.
There was a stack of red and yellow fireworks on a spectacular opening night.
Night of firsts
Three players kicked their first AFL goals but none was as spectacular as rugby league convert Karmichael Hunt. Late in the second quarter Hunt ran forward on to a perfectly weighted Michael Rischitelli pass, ran 10m to steady, then launched his right footed shot from 55m to bring the Metricon Stadium fans to their feet. In the second half, Geelong's Nathan Vardy converted nicely from a 40m set shot, while in the final quarter, Cats substitute Josh Cowan - who showed plenty of dash in his short time - kicked from outside the 50 to register his first League goal.
In trouble?
While Hunt kicked his first AFL goal, he may face some strife from the Match Review Panel after a high bump during the first quarter on Cats ruckman Nathan Vardy. Vardy had his head over the ball when Hunt came in and appeared to hit him high. Vardy was stretchered off with a neck injury, but later returned.
Quarter by quarter summary
First Quarter
A dazzling display of fireworks opened the new Metricon Stadium, but when Geelong forward Mathew Stokes kicked a goal with the Cats’ first foray forward, the expected result looked a foregone conclusion. However, the GC SUNS hit back, kicking the next four goals for the quarter, two to livewire forward Nathan Krakouer. Steve Johnson kicked a goal to stop the surge but Charlie Dixon kicked one straight back. Late goals to James Podsiadly (Geelong) and Zac Smith (Gold Coast) put Gold Coast ahead, 6.4 (40) to 3.2 (20).
Second Quarter
The GC SUNS kicked the first goal of the quarter before Geelong scored four goals to give them back the lead. Jared Brennan crumbed a goal to swing the lead, and the momentum, back in Gold Coast’s favour. Karmichael Hunt marked a long Michael Rischitelli kick and kicked his first AFL goal, to the delight of his teammates and the sell-out crowd. The Suns led 9.8 (62) to 8.3 (51) at half-time.
Third Quarter
Two quick goals to Steve Johnson set the tempo for the rest of the quarter as Geelong wrested control of the game back. Johnson had four goals for the quarter and Podsiadly had two, as Geelong booted eight goals to one to take a 34-point lead into three-quarter time. A substitute mix-up on the Cats bench led to a free kick and a 50m penalty to Gold Coast, although Gary Ablett was unable to capitalise with a goal. Daniel Harris was substituted off for Dion Prestia for the Suns.
Fourth Quarter
Josh Hunt launched from 55m out to open the scoring in the first quarter and snuff out any chance of a GC SUNS comeback. From there, the Cats kicked on, with goals to Daniel Menzel, Nathan Vardy, Johnson and Josh Cowan. Johnson’s goal gave him a career-best of seven goals, while Vardy and Cowan’s goals were the first for their AFL careers. Geelong kicked the last 11 goals of the game and kept Gold Coast scoreless in the last quarter to run away comfortable winners, 21.13 (139) to 10.13 (73).
Geelong Cats 3.2 8.3 16.9 21.13 (139)
Gold Coast SUNS 6.4 9.8 10.11 10.13 (73)
GOALS
Geelong Cats: Johnson 7, Podsiadly 4, Selwood 2, Stokes 2, Ling, Hunt, Menzel, Vardy, Cowan, Hawkins
Gold Coast SUNS: Smith 2, Krakouer 2, Brennan, Stanley, Lynch, Iles, Hunt, Dixon
BEST
Geelong Cats: Johnson, Bartel, Podsiadly, Selwood, Chapman, Kelly
Gold Coast SUNS: Ablett, Smith, Bock, Swallow
INJURIES
Geelong Cats: nil
Gold Coast SUNS: nil
SUBSTITUTES
Geelong Cats: Tom Hawkins replaced by Josh Cowan in the third quarter
Gold Coast SUNS: Daniel Harris replaced by Dion Prestia at start of fourth quarter
Reports: Nil
Umpires: Rosebury, Leppard, Findlay
Official crowd: 21,485 at Metricon Stadium
The views in this article are those of the author and not necessarily of the clubs or the AFL
