Umpires: G.James & G.Morrow

Goalkickers: K.Hunter 4, F.Murphy 3, P.Meldrum 2, S.Kourkoumelis 2, J.Madden 2, W.Johnston 2, W.Jones 1, R.Austin 1, W.Blackwell 1, J.Buckley 1, S.Robertson 1.

Best: S.Kourkoumelis, W.Jones, B.Reid, P.Meldrum, J.Buckley, K.Hunter, J.Madden, F.Murphy, W.Blackwell

Reports: Nil

Injuries: F.Murphy (shin) & M.Maclure (thigh)

Game Review

Even before the half-way stage of the season, this was a crunch game for the Blues. Facing an in-form, confident Sydney at the SCG, a loss would have put us two wins out of the top five, and facing a near-impossible task to get back in.

Carlton swung the axe at the selection table, and among those who paid the price of failure was boom recruit Warren Ralph. Bruce Reid and Peter McConville were named in the key forward posts, but before the bounce, coach David Parkin sent Ken Hunter into attack, and the champion utility inspired his team to a gutsy and memorable win. Carlton kicked six goals to one in a blistering first quarter, and were never headed on the way to an impressive 52-point victory.

Four superb goals to Hunter, three to Fraser Murphy and a couple more to Paul Meldrum set up the win, and lifted Carlton back to third place on the ladder - thanks to Footscray's surprise win over Collingwood, and Richmond's expensive loss to Melbourne. After this round, the top five were Essendon, Hawthorn, Carlton, Collingwood and Richmond. With this win, the Blues jumped from sixth to third.

Up in Sydney on Sunday, Carlton made the Swans look second-rate, and leading the mockery was Spiro Kourkoumelis. The talented ruck-rover raked up the possessions in a best on ground performance. He was well supported by Jimmy Buckley and Warren Jones. - Inside Football Player of the Year.

Big hunches pay off for Blues in Sydney
Sydney Swans have failed their first big test against Carlton. The Swans must have felt like gladiators who left their shields behind, facing the onslaught of those ferocious Blues in that torrid opening. The Blues played like men possessed and attacked the ball as if their life depended on it. Experiencing such pressure is unique to the Swans and learning is what life is all about. There was no stopping the Blues who were in top flight. Hunches paid a huge part in Carlton's victory, with Warren "Wow" Jones an outstanding example in the ruck all day. Jones replaced a desperately unlucky Honybun in the ruck and played his career-best game for the Blues. Another player who lifted for the occasion was ruck-rover Spiro Kourkoumelis. Kourkoumelis, with team-mates Jim Buckley, Wayne Blackwell, Paul Meldrum amd former VFA star, Fraser Murphy, usually emerged from the packs with the ball to set the Blues in motion. Carlton played its cards close to its chests and you must admire its meticulous planning. Justin Madden's positioning and early success at full forward forced the relocation of Steve Taubert's and Barry Round's duties. Taubert was shifted to full-back to counter the giant Madden and Barry Round's usual forward role was dispensed with when he replaced Taubert in the ruck. Imagine if the reverse had occurred and Round, not Madden, had kicked those early goals, forcing Carlton on the defensive. That's football and, as they say, teams make their own luck. - Peter Hogan Inside Football.

I had a gut feeling that Carlton would bounce back in the manner it did against the Swans in Sydney on Sunday. The Blues players have a lot of pride and obviously were hell-bent on making amends for the two succesive big defeats dished out to them by Hawthorn and Essendon. Right from the first bounce you could see this was a more determined Carlton side. There was a sense of urgency among the Carlton players and they looked hungry for the ball. It appeared as though all the Blues had resolved to really make it happen on Sunday in front of the big SCG crowd. They were just too good for the Swans and scored a morale-boosting victory. To their credit, the Swans never stopped trying, but they were not in the hunt against a very ruthless Carlton team. The Blues have a history of producing the goods when their backs are to the wall. That's what makes them such a good side. Sunday's effort certainly got the critics off their back. - Barry Cable Inside Football.

Carlton proved yet again that the SCG is one of its favorite grounds, with a no-mercy, all-the-way-win against the hapless Swans. A crowd of more then 25,000 saw the game. Kourkoumelis, Reid and Meldrum appeared impassable on the day and there were no big scores among the starved Swans forwards. - Football Record.

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