Josh Fraser reviews the performances of the Carlton-listed players after his first win as senior coach in the Northern Blues’ thrilling 14-point win over Geelong at Simonds Stadium. 

14. Liam Jones

Stats: 14 disposals, 9 marks (5 contested, 4 inside 50), 3 inside 50s, 5 goals
From the coach: Another strong performance from Liam: he provided a real focal point forward of ball. He continues to provide repeat efforts and is showing good leadership.

18. Daniel Gorringe

Stats: 13 disposals, 4 marks, 4 inside 50s, 18 hitouts, 2 goals
From the coach: He gave us real spark in second half, with two important goals late in the game. He also put in some impressive follow-up efforts as a ruckman.

26. Matthew Dick

Stats: 18 disposals, 8 handball receives
From the coach: Matty played an important role as one of our defensive group, had good examples of one-on-one wins, and played an a big role in our set-up behind the ball.

31. Jayden Foster

Stats: 10 disposals
From the coach: Foster continues to work hard on areas of his game as a defender and he had a couple of impressive one-on-one contests: now it’s about finding consistency.

34. Jesse Glass-McCasker
Stats:
10 disposals, 5 handball receives
From the coach: Encouraging performance from Jesse: he spent time on Vardy, defended really well and at different times provided rebounding presence.

38. Billy Gowers

Stats: 15 disposals, 1 goal
From the coach: Bill had some important moments around the contest where he cleared the ball, and showed some signs of improvement in areas where he’s challenged. Kicked a big goal late to ice the game.

42. Mark Whiley

Stats: 11 disposals, 3 hard ball gets, 4 tackles
From the coach: He had a strong presence around the stoppages in the first half, and his ability to get first hands on the ball and apply tackle pressure was a feature. 

43. Simon White

Stats: 22 disposals, 5 marks, 11 handball receives
From the coach: Terrific game from Whitey, who again gave us a very strong presence in our back six. There were a couple of individual efforts to go back with flight and compete, and he put together a four-quarter performance.

48. Kristian Jaksch

Stats: 12 disposals, 5 marks, 4 inside 50s, 3 goals
From the coach: Continues to show signs he’s on the right track, with some impressive contested marking and a big goal from outside 50. Consistency is the aim for KJ now. 


Kristian Jaksch had an impressive performance against Geelong. (Photo: Tim Murdoch)

49. Dennis Armfield

Stats: 14 disposals, 6 inside 50s, 4 tackles
From the coach: First up, his effort and energy were outstanding. Dennis’ ability to apply pressure was terrific, and his leadership and spirit were really the hallmarks of his game.


Dennis Armfield provided plenty of energy in his return game. (Photo: Tim Murdoch)

56. Andrew Gallucci

Stats: 12 disposals, 2 clearances, 3 tackles
From the coach:
Tackling and chase pressure was a strong feature of his game, and his ability to work to the drop of the ball was an improvement on previous weeks. He provided good spark with the ball in vicinity.


Andrew Gallucci was a busy performer against Geelong. (Photo: Tim Murdoch)

60. David Cuningham

Stats: 14 disposals, 7 hard ball gets, 4 tackles, 1 goal
From the coach: Again he showed good signs of his ability to win the ball in traffic and stay strong in the contest, while this week he spent some time forward and kicked a smart goal. 

65. Dillon Viojo-Rainbow

Stats: 12 disposals, 5 marks
From the coach: He didn’t have the same impact as previous weeks, but is working hard on areas of his game that we’ve identified he needs to improve. He had some important touches where he was involved in scoring chains. 

67. Clem Smith

Stats: 6 disposals, 3 tackles
From the coach: In the second half he was really important with his ability to apply pressure, and was really important in setting up scoreboard pressure late in the game. 

76. Jason Tutt

Stats: 21 disposals, 12 handball receives, 1 goal
From the coach: His effort to run and break the lines was important, and he continues to find a lot of the ball. There was a good intent to apply pressure.


Jason Tutt continues to find plenty of the footy at VFL level. (Photo: Tim Murdoch)

80. Matthew Korcheck

Stats: 6 disposals, 2 contested marks, 13 hitouts
From the coach: It was his best game for the club - he competed well in the ruck, took two contested marks around the ground and provided good presence as a tall in aerial contests.