Geelong has moved into second position on the VFLW ladder following a stirring victory over Southern Saints in trying conditions on Sunday.

The Cats controlled much of the play without being able to find reward on the scoreboard except early and late, but strung together an important 2.5 (17) to 1.1 (7) win over the Saints at Trevor Barker Beach Oval.

With the ground heavy underfoot due to recent rain - which continued up until the first quarter of the match - the Cats again showed how adaptable they could be with their method, playing the conditions well.

While there are plenty of new, young faces in the side from last season, for the returning core, the victory had an extra note of passion, given it was the Saints who knocked them out of finals last season.

Analea McKee again found herself among the goalkickers, positioning well deep in the Cats' forward line to get the opening goal of the contest - a goal-line collect and snap.

While the Saints responded in the second term to trim the margin to just three points, the Cats held their opponents scoreless in the second half, and a great run-down tackle and resulting goal from Cheryl de Groot sealed the victory.

"Since (de Groot) came into our program, she’s really worked on her defensive pressure and not just being a long-kicking forward. She brings a lot of pressure and she has done the last few rounds, so we’ve been waiting for her to get some reward in terms of a goal, and to see the girls get around her when she kicked it was really nice to watch," VFLW Senior Coach Elise Coventry said.

"We spoke a lot about the conditions pre-game and trying to get forward early, so it was really nice to get on the end of one early (with McKee) and have that lead.

"We know our defenders hold up really well, so for them to stem any flow for them to score, put us in a position to slog it out for the rest of the game, which we did. And then we got a few more chances later in the game."

Coventry said while there was some concern in the coaches' box that the Cats' control of the play wasn't translating to as man goals as they would have liked, they were pleased to see the group keep slogging away and winning the game through grit and determination.

It was the young Cats group's third win in a row, and pleasingly for their coach, all three wins have come in very different circumstances, showing the ability of the group to respond and adapt to each individual challenge.

"Against Carlton we had to come from behind and win; last week against Darebin we put together a lot of footy that we’d been training really hard for and opened the game up a bit; and then today just had to slog it out," Coventry said.

"The last three weeks we’ve built not just on our momentum, but also on our experience and knowledge of the game, and they (the players) have made adjustments along the way to our method and been able to get the win.

"So I think their confidence is building, and also it is bringing the group together a lot more, I think. You see the wins and singing the song, they all look happy and they look like they’re getting along."

de Groot's forward pressure all day was important, but was particularly impressive in the final term as she secured three free kicks after trapping Saints holding the ball, with the final free resulting in the match-sealing goal.

Chloe Scheer was brilliant again in the midfield, with her work in the middle proving a huge asset for the Cats as they took on the team that had lead the competition for clearances heading into the game.

In her second game of the season, Scheer finished with 20 disposals, 3 tackles and 3 clearances.

Fellow mid Charlotte Simpson was again brilliant, leading everyone for disposals (31) and clearances (12), as well as laying seven tackles.

"I said to 'Simmo' at the start of the game it was her kind of day: she's a really strong contest player, and she went to work in the middle and got us a few good looks," Coventry said.

"Renee (Garing) I think has had 18 tackles in there and put on a lot of pressure, which she always does, but these conditions suit her. She likes to grind it out and did that super well.

"'Ab' McDonald's game in the backline, at times, looked like she was playing with a dry footy compared to everyone else, and she found herself in a lot of time and space to help us clear that defensive 50.

"Chloe Leonard, our captain, I thought in our first half set the tone with our defensive pressure. (She) got right up in there and shut a lot of their entries forward down."

The Cats will be looking to keep their strong start to the season going when they take on their next challenge, the Western Bulldogs, back home at Deakin University Elite Sports Precinct this Saturday

VFLW Round 4

Southern Saints   0.1   1.1   1.1   1.1 (7)
Geelong               1.2   1.4   1.4   2.5 (17)

GOALS
Southern Saints: Lucy Burke
Geelong: Analea McKee, Cheryl de Groot

BEST
Geelong: Chloe Scheer, Charlotte Simpson, Renee Garing, Cheryl de Groot, Abbey McDonald, Chloe Leonard