The Wrap Up | Round 8 v Western Bulldogs
Written by Helena Petrou
When will it end?
It was a story of “what could have been” for the Carlton Football Club after a demoralising loss to the Western Bulldogs at Marvel Stadium. Despite controlling the match for 3 quarters and entering the final break with a 12-point lead, Carlton’s all too familiar ability to concede 5+ consecutive goals led them to losing the game by 16 points. Standout performances from the likes of Harry McKay, Eddie Betts, Sam Docherty and Jacob Weitering weren’t enough to get the Blues over the line, leaving Carlton 3-5 with the undefeated Melbourne Demons as their next opponent.
Match Summary:
Although the Bulldogs were the first to hit the scoreboard, some Eddie Betts magic helped the Blues to keep in touch with the fiery Dogs. The first quarter was an arm wrestle in all aspects of the game, another goal from Betts and one from Owies saw Carlton head into the first break 6 points down.
The Bagger’s began to take control of the game in the second quarter, with back-to-back goals from Eddie Betts easing the pressure on the scoreboard which came from an early Josh Bruce Major. It wasn’t long before Harry McKay got involved, slotting his first for the day. Owies helped keep the scoreboard in Carlton’s favour with a major of his own. Carlton’s leaders young and old stood up with the likes of Docherty, Curnow and Walsh getting plenty of the ball. The quarter ended with David Cunningham scoring a classy running goal from 30m out increasing Carlton’s lead to 12 points at the half.
The third quarter seemed too good to be true to Carlton supporters, (which they would later find to be correct) as the Blues produced some of their best football of the year. Although Carlton was being bullied at the centre clearance the Bagger’s high pressure around the ground saw them cleanly intercept and make the Dogs pay when the ball was turned over. Harry McKay did what he does best, slotting 3 goals all from varying angles, while Betts kicked another to bring his goal tally to 5 for the day. Sam Docherty was at his rebounding best, while Weitering was marking seemingly every ball that entered the defensive 50. Sam Walsh was a key part of Carlton’s transition play through the midfield alongside David Cunningham. Jack Silvagni was subbed off due to a concussion he sustained in a collision with teammate Jack Newnes, affecting the Blue’s forward structure and overall cohesion for the worse leaving Sam Petrevski-Seton prepared to sub on in the fourth quarter. Despite Carlton increasing their lead to 27 points in the third term, the Dog’s bagged the last 2 goals of the quarter giving Blues fans a hint of what was to come.
The last quarter is one that Carlton fans would rather forget. Although Carlton had been dominating one of the best teams of the season for ¾ of the game, one good quarter from the Dogs is all it took to derail the Blues who seemingly had victory at their fingertips. An early uncontested turnover from Liam Stocker in the corridor set the tone for the remainder of the match. Carlton conceded 6 unanswered goals in the final term with each goal further erasing their fantastic efforts of the first 3 quarters. Missed chances from Fogarty, Casboult and Silvagni in earlier quarters proved incredibly costly even though the Blues finished with 57% efficiency inside 50. Sam Docherty was the only Carlton player to collect more than 5 disposals in the final quarter, whilst 11 Bulldogs collected 5 or more. When the game was there to be won or lost, Carlton’s leaders were no where to be found, with key players Patrick Cripps and Zac Williams combining for only 5 disposals in the last term. The Blues found a way to lessen their bleeding with a late goal from Cripps, but the game had already been decided with the Bulldogs walking out 16-point victors.
The stats don’t lie:
Three quarters of their best football wasn’t enough for Carlton to get the win over the Bulldogs, and their ability to play their best and worst football in the span of 4 quarters is what continues to cost them games. At the final siren, the Dog’s had dominated Carlton in every single statistic, especially in centre clearances. The Bulldog’s midfield is one of the best in the competition and showed Carlton’s that they still have a long way to go, with the Dogs winning centre clearances 23 to 7. For context as to how poor Carlton’s ability to win the ball out of the centre was, last week against Essendon in only 14% game time, Paddy Dow was able to accumulate 2 centre clearances alone. Even though Carlton won the hit outs 42-23, they lost the clearances 27-43. This not only demonstrates Carlton’s inability to make their hit outs to advantage, but their inability to keep a leash on their direct matchup at stoppages. Carlton’s inability to win clearances led to the Bulldogs gathering more uncontested possessions leaving them to dictate the game when it mattered. When the game was there to be won or lost in the final 10 minutes Carlton had 18% of time in possession to the Dog’s 37% showing the lack of desire from the Blues. It should be noted that Sam Walsh had 38 pressure acts, 14 more than anyone else on the ground.
A loss that had Carlton fans leaving the ground with more questions than answers, it’s one that could be season defining. The Blues must look to improve their centre clearance work next week against the Demons, as well as playing at a consistent high level for the entirety of the game. With question marks hanging over players, coaching approaches, player management and club culture the pressure on the Carlton Football club will continue to grow until they can begin to win against quality sides, just as they were so close, yet so far from doing against the Dogs in round 8.
Best: Weitering, Docherty, Curnow, Betts, McKay, Cunningham
