CARLTON has maintained its grip on a top four spot with a gritty 18-point win over North Melbourne in front of 41,332 fans at Etihad Stadium on Friday night.

The lead changed six times during the Blues' 11.14 (80) to 9.8 (62) win, but in the end sheer weight of time in attack saw Brett Ratten's men home.

Affronted by the Kangaroos' choice of them as opposition for their only Friday night game of the season, Carlton dominated the inside 50 count 55-41, but for much of the night were frustratingly wasteful in front of goal.

Finally though, as seemed almost inevitable, the Blues found their range and the dam wall burst.

With scores level at three quarter-time, Carlton banged on four consecutive goals in the final quarter to establish a match-winning lead.

After a quiet first quarter, Bryce Gibbs was the match-winner for Carlton, booting a career-best four goals and gathering 20 touches.

Chris Judd, in his first game since becoming a father on Tuesday, also took a while to get going but still finished with 25 touches and kicked one of the four crucial fourth-quarter goals.

Kade Simpson was busy all night, Chris Yarran was dynamic off half-back, and big man Lachie Henderson performed an effective shut-down job on dangerous Kangaroos forward Drew Petrie.

North Melbourne, led by their trio of young hard nuts Andrew Swallow (33 disposals, nine clearances, nine tackles), Jack Ziebell (10 tackles, four clearances) and Ryan Bastinac (seven clearances), were brilliant in close.

Also aided by dominant ruckman Todd Goldstein's 36 hitouts, the Roos won the clearances 37-25 but couldn't capitalise on that excellent inside work, lacking the spread and polish to provide enough forward supply.

By contrast, Carlton's dominance of the uncontested possession count was telling. The Blues had 213, while the Roos managed only 169.

Up forward, Petrie and Cameron Pedersen both bagged two goals, and at the other end defender Scott Thompson kept last week's eight-goal star Eddie Betts largely quiet.

What it means
Carlton is now safe in the top four for at least another week, and will feel confident of toppling Melbourne next round.

After hanging in for most of the night, the Roos missed their best opportunity since coach Brad Scott came to the helm to beat a top four side.

They now have eight wins and 10 losses, and will watch the weekend's remaining matches closely hoping Collingwood, Hawthorn and Gold Coast can beat Essendon, Fremantle and St Kilda respectively to keep them in touch with the top eight.

Happy 200th…
Carlton veteran Ryan Houlihan was handed a less-than-ideal present for his 200th game: the green substitute's vest.

Allowed to remove the dreaded garment to run through an enormous banner in his honour before the match, the forward soon had it back on as he headed for the interchange.

There he remained until being subbed on for a sore Dennis Armfield at three quarter-time.

The 29-year-old gathered one handball, a clearance, and laid a tackle in the final term before being chaired from the ground by his teammates as thanks for 11 years' loyal service to the navy blue.

Toyota AFL Dream Team highlight
Carlton: Gibbs had just a handball and some tackles to his name at quarter-time, but when the final siren blew he'd amassed a game-high 144 points.

Next four
Carlton: Melbourne (MCG), Fremantle (PS), Hawthorn (ES), bye

What the coach said
Brett Ratten
"For our football club, it was time to make a stand. We spoke about, 'why do the Kangaroos pick us for their Friday night game every year?' They asked for us. Is that because we're close geographically together, or do they think it's a great way to spend their Friday night that they get from the AFL?"

Quarter by quarter

First quarter
Neither side could break the deadlock in the opening half of the first quarter. The tackling was intense and the pressure up as both sides tried to find an avenue to goal. A great kick from David Ellard 16 minutes into the term found Eddie Betts in space, and the Carlton small man was able to break the stalemate and kick the first major of the night. Andrew Walker missed a goal a minute later for the Blues, and the Roos cleared brilliantly from the kick out to score their first goal of the night, a coast to coast effort that led to Cameron Pedersen kicking his first. Quick follow-up goals to Leigh Adams and Brent Harvey gave North Melbourne a 10-point lead at quarter time.

Second quarter
Bryce Gibbs was brilliant in the opening minutes of the second quarter, kicking the opening two goals of the term and restoring Carlton's lead. However, the Blues were inaccurate in front of goal. They wasted opportunities, having 26 inside 50s to North's 16, and that wastefulness came back to hurt them. While Carlton had appeared to control the game in the first half of the term, North was able to hurt the Blues on the rebound. Yet again, a miss from Walker in front of goal allowed the Roos to take the ball coast to coast, and Pedersen again kicked the goal that restored North's lead. A spectacular mark from Drew Petrie was followed by his first goal of the night. Aaron Edwards found space late in the quarter and extended the Roos' break to 11 points at the main break.

Third quarter
Carlton made its move in the third quarter, dominating general play and finally getting reward on the scoreboard. The Blues closed down the Kangaroos' rebound and started to take control of the centre. Despite Todd Goldstein's continued dominance in the ruck, the Blues started to win more ball out of the clearances. It took seven minutes before Matthew Kruezer scored the first goal of the quarter, and when Walker won a holding the ball decision and kicked his first of the night, Carlton had drawn level. When the influential Gibbs ran into an open goal, the Blues had the lead for the first time since early in the second quarter. Late in the quarter, North's best player Andrew Swallow took a heavy hit from Bret Thornton on the Roos' goal line. He kicked his first of the night and levelled the scores heading into the final break.

Fourth quarter
The first goal of the quarter was crucial and while the Roos had the first chance, a shot on the run by Petrie missed everything. The Blues cleared and Carlton attacked, and Walker's set shot gave the Blues the critical break early in the last term. A Petrie soccer off the ground gave the Roos the lead once more, but from there it was all Carlton. Chris Judd struggled for much of the night, but his goal at the 10-minute mark from a set shot outside 50 gave the Blues the lead by a goal and an emotional lift. A minute later, Betts pushed the ball out of a pack and Thornton ran onto the loose ball and kicked the goal to give the Blues a two-goal buffer. When Garlett added another just a minute later, the Blues had kicked clear and all but guaranteed themselves the four points.

Carlton                     1.4    3.9    6.12    11.14 (80)
North Melbourne     3.2    6.2    7.6      9.8 (62)

GOALS
Carlton: Gibbs 4, Walker 2, Betts, Kreuzer, Judd, Thornton, Garlett
North Melbourne: Pedersen 2, Petrie 2, Adams, Harvey, Edwards, Swallow, Cunnington

BEST
Carlton: Gibbs, Simpson, Yarran, Henderson, Ellard
North Melbourne: Swallow, Goldstein, Thompson, Bastinac, Ziebell

INJURIES
Carlton: Armfield (left ankle)
North Melbourne: Macmillian (virus) replaced in the selected side by Urquhart

SUBSTITUTES
Carlton: Dennis Armfield replaced by Ryan Houlihan to start the final quarter.
North Melbourne: Robbie Tarrant replaced by Gavin Urquhart to start the final quarter.

Reports: Nil

Umpires: Vozzo, McBurney, Stewart

Official crowd: 41,332 at Etihad Stadium

The views in this article are those of the author and not necessarily of the club.