Goalkickers: J. Honey 2.1, C. Curnow 1.2, J. Silvagni 1.1, E. Betts 1.0, H. McKay 1.0, E. Curnow 1.0, T. De Koning 0.1, Z. Fisher 0.1, Rushed 0.3.

Reports: Nil.

Umpires: Jacob Mollison, Nathan Toner, Alex Whetton.

Injuries: N. Newman (nose), S. Walsh (ankle), H. McKay (shoulder).

Ladder: 13th.

Game Review

Sun sets on Carlton's final hopes with late Gold Coast surge.
The sun has set on Carlton's finals chances, with Gold Coast storming home - By Luke Michael / Julian Wallace.

Gold Coast has effectively extinguished Carlton’s finals hopes and placed further pressure on embattled coach David Teague with a stunning 19-point victory at Marvel Stadium on Saturday. It was a topsy-turvy contest for much of the day, but Gold Coast finished off strongly to record a hard fought 11.10 (76) to 8.9 (57) victory. Touk Miller continued his outstanding season with 35 disposals, seven clearances and two goals, while Wil Powell was impressive with 29 touches and a goal. Gold Coast made a bright start to the match, dominating the territory battle early against a Carlton outfit struggling to get its hands on the footy. But Charlie Curnow finally got the Blues on the scoreboard in the fifteenth minute with a beautiful curling goal off a couple of steps that underlined his class.

From there, the Blues started to work themselves into the contest, with Josh Honey kicking the next two goals to give them the edge at quarter time. The Suns looked to get on top in the second term, with two early stoppage goals from Miller and Jacob Townsend giving Gold Coast the lead. Carlton then ramped up the pressure, putting the Suns under the pump with quick, electric ball movement that helped the Blues kick the final two goals of the term. The third quarter belonged to the Suns, which suddenly looked the more aggressive team and overwhelmed Carlton’s team defence with four goals to lead by seven points at the final break. Carlton was on the brink of a season-ending defeat, but Gold Coast made an error-filled start to the final term, allowing Ed Curnow to kick an important goal to even things up. The Suns refused to go into their shells though, continually surging the ball forward and being rewarded with the next two goals through Townsend and Josh Corbett. Fittingly, it was Miller who then sealed victory with his second goal, before Powell put the icing on the cake with a classy running goal from the pocket.

Quarter one:
After a scrappy start, it was the Gold Coast Suns who would hit the scoreboard for the first time in Round 21. Struggling to break through the Suns’ defensive set-up, the Blues began to heap the pressure on the opposition with repeat forward entries, eventually leading to a beautiful bending goal from Charlie Curnow to get his team on the board. Zac Fisher and Jack Silvagni worked well off the crumbs of the tall forwards during the quarter, able to create scoring opportunities throughout the term, while Josh Honey made the most of the forward territory to kick his first goal and give the Blues the lead towards the end of the quarter. At the other end of the ground, an inspiring defensive effort from Liam Jones towards the end of the quarter saved a certain Gold Coast goal. Honey then benefitted from a contested ball win from co-captain Patrick Cripps, who shrugged off the tackle of Matt Rowell before finding his teammate open in the forward half. Honey’s second goal would give the Blues a ten-point lead heading into the first break.

Quarter two:
The second quarter started much like the first, with the Suns once again bringing all the energy. Carlton was more patient with their build-up out of the backline, as it attempted to regain control of the play and not feed into the fast-paced style of the opposition. Tall forwards Harry McKay and Charlie Curnow worked hard up the wings to provide a marking target in transition. The hard work finally paid off, when the two combined with Eddie Betts to give the Blues their first goal for the term. It was truly a term of two halves, with Jack Silvagni’s goal flicking the switch on what would be a more free-flowing period of play for the Blues as they wrestled back some control from the opposition. Silvagni was important across the ground, continuing to contest well in the ruck, while also providing some much-needed aggressiveness on the wings to propel the Blues into attack. He would head into the main break with eight disposals, five score involvements and a goal of his own.

Quarter three:
It looked as though the third quarter was on track for a similar start to the opening two quarters when the Gold Coast Suns slotted a quick goal to cut Carlton's half-time lead to just three points. However, when Harry McKay rewarded the hard-run of Jack Martin with a brilliantly positioned pass, the Blues were once again able to regain some control of the flow of play. Carlton was unable to make the most of their repeat entries inside the forward line, with missed opportunities seeing the opposition kick three unanswered goals and take a seven-point lead into the final change.

Quarter four:
It was a nervous start from both teams to start the final term, with neither looking to take big risks with the game on the line. The Blues set-up well behind the play early in the term to restrict the Suns’ ball movement, while pressure in the forward line from Josh Honey would result in Ed Curnow squaring the ledger. Momentum would turn after star-forward Harry McKay injured his shoulder halfway through the final term. At the other end of the ground, Gold Coast’s Jacob Townsend gave his team the lead with his second goal of the day. Harry McKay continued his fight, playing bravely through his shoulder injury to give the Blues a late goal and a late chance, but it was too little too late for the Blues, with a disappointing loss all but ending the Blues’ chances of finals football.

Silvagni sparks Carlton with brilliant recovery effort.
Jack Silvagni has swiftly developed into a key player for Carlton, and highlighted his rapid improvement with a clever goal against the Suns in the second quarter. Silvagni fell over just as the ball was being kicked his way inside 50, but quickly bounced back to his feet to grab possession of the footy. But just as impressively, he managed to then kick the ball through the goals while he was off balance and being hotly pursued by two Suns’ players.

Coleman Medal leader suffers injury scare
It was a dirty day for Carlton on Saturday and the season-ending loss was further soured by an injury scare to Harry McKay. The Coleman Medal leader looked to be in trouble after landing heavily on his right shoulder in a marking contest in the fourth quarter. McKay went down into the rooms briefly but came back onto the ground to play out the rest of the game. While he ended up kicking a late goal, McKay appeared to still be in pain. Coach David Teague said post-game he was hopeful the star forward would be okay.

Best: N. Newman, J. Weitering, E. Curnow, J. Honey, M. Kennedy, J. Martin.

Team

Medical Sub.: Marc Murphy (not used).

In; Eddie Betts
Out: Matthew Owies (omitted).

Milestones

Last Game (Carlton): Liam Jones

AFLCA Votes

10 - Touk Miller (GCFC)
7 - Wil Powell (GCFC)
6 - Noah Anderson (GCFC)
4 - Jacob Weitering (CARL)
2 - Sam Collins (GCFC)
1 - Brayden Fiorini (GCFC)

Brownlow Votes

3 - Touk Miller (GCFC)
2 - Sam Collins (GCFC)
1 - Noah Anderson (GCFC)

Best & Fairest Votes

Jacob Weitering 7, Nic Newman 6, Josh Honey 4, Jack Martin 4, Sam Walsh 3, Patrick Cripps 3, Matt Kennedy 3, Charlie Curnow 3, Liam Jones 2, Jack Silvagni 1, Harry McKay 1