Blues Hold Off Fast Finishing Demons

A cool drizzly night made it easy for fans to watch from home but the match saw a good crowd of 58,472 turn up to the MCG. The drizzle was falling early but not enough to make it too slippery at the start. After an early arm wrestle the Blues struck first after six minutes of play, where each team worked cautiously to feel each other out. Walsh broke the shackles, snapping around the body from 35 meters out, straight in front, for the Blues. 

While the Blues midfielders were looking for Harry and Charlie, it was the big man from the middle in Pittonet who marked and goaled at the top of the 50. Martin made it three goals in 5 minutes for the Blues when he marked at the top of the goal square. The rain grew heavier halfway through the quarter. Neither team could score again for another seven or eight minutes, but Harry McKay was able to get a better read on a bad kick to evade the defending Lever and mark and goal from 20 meters out.  

Melbourne did go forward, but the Carlton defenders like McGovern, Weitering, and Newman and the hard work of Akers were able to repeatedly foil the Demon forwards and clear the ball from their defensive 50. Late in the quarter big Melbourne defender Jake Lever was beaten again, this time by De Koning who started deep and lead hard to mark and kick the set shot goal from 48 meters out, in the final minute of the quarter. A great start by the Blues kicking five unanswered goals. 

The second quarter ran scoreless for eight minutes, before Owies was able to mark and add to the Demon's woes with another accurate kick for goal. Petracca had been quiet in the midfield but now he'd been moved up forward. And that was about to change. The drought was finally broken when the Demons won the center clearance and Petracca on the lead, was able to leap high one handed and pull the ball down to mark and goal from 20 meters out. He almost added another a few minutes later, shooting from a standing start but he only scored the first minor score (behind) for the night.  Then a minute later he again marked and from the pocket, kicked his second goal of the night. 

Hollands and Curnow blemished Carlton's scoresheet with behinds and it looked like the door might be ajar for a Melbourne comeback, before Cripps was able to rove a ball that went over the forward pack and belt home a goal. Owies kicked his second goal short after to put the Blues in front by 37 points. Daniel Turner kicked his first goal for the night to improve the Demon's lot slightly but that still left them 31 points behind at half time.

The start to the third quarter was more eventful than the first two. In the first 30 seconds the ball came inside 50 and Curnow gathered the ball one handed in the pocket and turned onto his right boot to snap the ball home. The answer at the other end was almost as quick as Pickett dropped the mark at the top of the 50 but then received the ball from his teammate and kick a goal on the run from 40 meters out. 

Tom McDonald and Judd McVeigh will want to forget the scenes where they dithered in front of goal allowing Owies to slip between them to gather and kick his third goal from close range. Bailey Fritsch might want to forget his set shot hitting the post from 20 meters out straight in front at the other end. Despite all that, Petracca continued to be a bright light when he could get near the ball. He roved the ruck contest and kicked his third of the night. It seemed Carlton would not allow the Demons back-to-back goals, and quickly got the ball up forward to Curnow who kicked his second for the night. The Demons weren't helped with Pickett and Chandler both missing shots at goal.

Just when you thought it was all over, it again was Petracca doing the damage for the Demons hit Fritsch on a quick lead in the pocket and this time Fritsch made amends with a nice snap on the left boot. With two minutes left in the quarter, he again willed himself into the game pushing past defenders and scrubbing a kick through for a goal to reduce the margin to 22 points and just maybe a chance to pull this one out of the fire for the Demons. 

The Blues on the other hand, needed to do what they had done all game and that quickly snuffed out any chance Melbourne had. It looked like things were going to plan when Hewett ran onto a loose ball and goaled from 25 meters out. Melbourne, of course, did come again though and this time it was Petty who clunked a big pack mark 20 meters out but his set shot was wide to the right. The rain that stopped around halftime, returned. Melbourne kept coming too, getting the ball in their forward half. Carlton's defenders and assisting midfielders, took the blows and gave little away.  

As we saw all night though, Petracca only needs a little space and he got the ball on the flank and hit Van Rooyen with a bullet like pass from 50 meters away. Van Rooyen's goal reduced the margin to 20 points. Viney slid into a ball that looked certain to be a behind, but he managed to knock it back to Windsor in the goal square and Windsor toe poked the ball home for a goal. This brought the margin to 13 points with four minutes playing time remaining. 

Melbourne didn't get a clean center clearance, but they did work it to Petracca in the pocket.  He marked, and as sure as the sun will come up tomorrow, he snapped the goal for his fourth of the night. A "holding the ball" decision in the middle of the ground set the Demons forward, but the ball stalled in the big pack 20 meters from goal. Pickett emerged from the cluster to snap at goal, but the ball was out of bounds on the full.  

Gawn marked at CHF and quickly went back to kick the goal from outside 50 and the margin was one point with 40 seconds on the clock. Melbourne won the final clearance of the match and ball came inside their forward 50, it was roved by Petracca, but he was tackled by Nick Newman in what probably turned out a match saving effort and the free kick was paid by the umpire. His clearing kick saw the Blues hold on by one solitary point.

Michael Voss will take the four points but could not be happy his charges gave up such a solid lead, while Melbourne coach Simon Goodwin would be disappointed with his forwards tonight, save for Pertracca who almost won the match off his own boot. 

CARLTON:   5.0 8.2 11.4 12.5  (77)
MELBOURNE: 0.0 3.1  7.6 11.10 (76)

GOALS
Carlton:   Owies 3, Curnow 2, Walsh, Pittonet, Martin, McKay, De Koning, Cripps, Hewett
Melbourne: Petracca 5, Turner, Pickett, Fritsch, van Rooyen, Windsor, Gawn

BEST
Carlton:   Cripps, Walsh, Weitering, Kennedy, O. Hollands, Curnow
Melbourne: Petracca, May, Neal-Bullen, Gawn, Viney

INJURIES
Carlton:   Pittonet (finger), Cerra (hamstring)
Melbourne: Nil

SUBSTITUTES
Carlton:   George Hewett (replaced Cerra in the third quarter)
Melbourne: Taj Woewodin (replaced Bowey in the fourth quarter)

Crowd: 58,472 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground