Goalkickers: J. Waite, B. Gibbs, S. White, L. Casboult, C. Yarran 1.

Umpires: D. Margetts, M. Nicholls, J. Schmitt.

Ladder: 13th

Game Review

In front of the largest crowd yet seen at the revamped Adelaide Oval, the shell of a once-mighty football club was laid bare when Carlton was outclassed by Port Adelaide on this clear, calm Friday evening. Already heavily depleted by injury, the Blues lost their captain Marc Murphy to concussion midway through the second quarter. From then on, they were steamrolled by a relentless home side that primed their finals campaign with a huge, percentage-boosting win.

Carlton travelled to Adelaide without Dale Thomas and David Ellard, both of whom suffered ankle damage during the previous week’s narrow loss to Geelong - increasing the list of Carlton players who would not appear again in 2014 to more than a dozen. First-year recruits Blaine Johnson and Nick Holman (on debut) were called up as replacements, along with the all but forgotten Kane Lucas, who had been languishing in the VFL with the Northern Blues since early May. ‘Sugar’ won back his place at the expense of Dennis Armfield, but was once again named as Carlton’s substitute. The Power too, had suffered their share of injuries through the season, before returning to something like their best and consolidating sixth spot on the ladder by beating Gold Coast in round 21. Port coach Ken Hinkley promised that his team would go all out to beat Carlton at home, so a bumper home crowd of 51,599 packed into the stadium intent on helping him keep his word.

From the first bounce, some dills in crowd booed Chris Judd every time he was near a contest, which was often. Still, the first 13 minutes of the match were a stalemate, until the boos turned to cheers when Port midfielder Chad Wingard took an uncontested mark in the goal-square and kicked the first goal of the night. Jarrad Waite opened Carlton’s account from the 50-metre arc three minutes later, but Port seized the initiative from that moment on, and their fifth major for the term – 4 seconds before the quarter-time siren – put them comfortably in front by 28 points.

Two minutes into the second term, Bryce Gibbs kicked Carlton’s second major with a clever set-shot from deep in the left forward pocket. Blues fans found a brief flicker of hope, only for Port to ramp up the pressure. When Murphy was stretchered off the field after slamming his head into the turf in a marking contest, the Blues seemed to lose purpose, and at half-time Port Adelaide led by an imposing 50 points.

The pain continued in a miserable second half for the visitors. Carlton could add only 3.3 in an hour of football, while Port continued the rout and kicked 11.8. In winning by 103 points, the Power registered their biggest-ever victory over the Blues, and their first win by three figures. Carlton’s final score of 5.7 was their worst effort for the year, and their lowest total against Port Adelaide since the Powers’ entry into the AFL in 1997.

So ended another black night for Carlton, when Gibbs, Judd and Sam Rowe battled hard against the odds and Cameron Wood stuck to his task in the ruck. Apart from that, the less said the better.

Subs: 9 Kane Lucas replaced Marc Murphy during the 2nd quarter.

Team

*Chris Yarran started as a loose man in defence

Milestones

Debut: Nick Holman

Brownlow Votes

3. Robbie Gray, Port Adelaide
2. Travis Boak, Port Adelaide
1. Hamish Hartlett, Port Adelaide

Best & Fairest Votes

Bryce Gibbs 6, Sam Rowe 6, Cameron Wood 5, Levi Casboult 1,

Ladder