Rd 14 Photo Gallery
Click Here
CARLTON has stormed home with a seven goal final quarter to edge Fremantle by 15 points at Subiaco Oval today and move back into the top eight.
Skipper Chris Judd (35 possessions) was supreme, while Setanta O’hAilpin was an unlikely forward hero with four goals as the Blues defeated Fremantle 16.19 (115) to 15.10 (100) after trailing at every change.
Brendan Fevola kicked three goals for the Blues, while Luke McPharlin and livewire rookie Hayden Ballantyne each booted three goals for Fremantle.
Fremantle stunned the Blues with a blistering opening term, dominating all over the ground.
Fremantle rookie Matt de Boer shrugged off three Carlton players to register the opening goal of the game with just one minute on the clock, and within 10 minutes, Fremantle had raced to a 25-point lead as Carlton’s midfield struggled to even register a possession.
Carlton’s first serious shot on goal came at the 15-minute mark when Fevola missed a set shot from 50 metres, but Jeff Garlett finally broke the Blues’ goal drought shortly after.
Judd, Bryce Gibbs and Marc Murphy began working their way into the game after being beaten soundly early, but poor discipline cost the Blues dearly.
McPharlin goalled for the home side, and in a subsequent scuffle, small forward Ballantyne was floored by Michael Jamison before the ball was returned to the centre. The resulting free kick gave Fremantle a second goal within a minute and allowed the home side to take a handy 28-point lead at the first break.
Alarm bells were ringing for the Blues when Fremantle kicked its first goal of the second quarter through Des Headland within a minute of the restart, and the home side was soon ahead by 36 points.
But the momentum then swung, as Judd and Gibbs broke Fremantle’s midfield dominance and Fevola and O’hAilpin began to find some space within the forward 50, with both key forwards kicking two goals each for the quarter as the Blues mounted a serious challenge.
Ballantyne’s third goal gave Fremantle some breathing space, but the Blues had narrowed the gap to 11 points at the long break and were right back in the match.
Carlton continued to press in the third quarter, but back-to-back goals from McPharlin coupled with some poor Carlton kicking for goal negated much of the Blues’ good work.
Judd and Gibbs continued to lead from the front, and the pair found support from Murphy and Andrew Carrazzo. O’hAilpin’s third goal raised Carlton’s hopes, but Scott Thornton’s snap late in time-on saw Fremantle take an 18-point lead to the final break.
The final quarter belonged to Carlton, as Judd again went up another gear, his tackling a feature of a superb display. The Blues kicked four goals in the first nine minutes to take the lead for the first time in the match, and never looked back.
Carrazzo contributed two goals and Gibbs kicked his second as the Blues finally left the Fremantle midfield flat-footed and stretched their lead to 10 points as time-on loomed.
Against the run of play, 100-gamer David Mundy goalled to lift the home side and throw out a final challenge to the Blues.
But Carlton simply had more left in the tank, and goals to Matthew Kreuzer, O’hAilpin and Chris Johnson finally shut the door on Fremantle.
Judd was the dominant player on the ground, closely followed by Gibbs, who recovered from a slow start against Mundy. Murphy, Carrazzo, Jordan Russell, Fevola and O’hAilpin all made significant contributions to the Blues’ victory, their seventh of the season.
Carlton 1.4 7.8 9.14 16.19 (115)
Fremantle 6.2 9.7 13.8 15.10 (100)
GOALS
Carlton: O'hAilpin 4, Fevola 3, Gibbs, Carrazzo 2, Garlett, Grigg, Johnson, Kreuzer, Russell
Fremantle: Ballantyne, McPharlin 3, Bradley, de Boer, Headland, Hill, Mundy, Sandilands, Schammer, Suban, Thornton
BEST
Carlton: Judd, Murphy, Gibbs, Russell, Carrazzo, O'hAilpin
Fremantle: McPharlin, Broughton, Mundy, Grover, Ballantyne, Schammer
INJURIES
Carlton: Nil
Fremantle: Foster (calf), replaced in selected side by Gilmore
Reports: Mark Austin (Carlton) for striking Nick Suban (Fremantle) in first quarter
Umpires: Findlay, Avon, Jeffery
Official crowd: 34,720 at Subiaco Oval
The views in this story are those of the author and not necessarily those of the clubs or the AFL.
