THE CARLTON Reserves put together a valiant performance against Sandringham, but ultimately fell short by 24 points.
After the visitors burst out of the blocks, the Blues well and truly got going in the third term, drawing within a solitary point leading into the final term.
However, the Saints ran out the game as the stronger of the two sides, ultimately handing the Blues a 11.6 (72) to 7.6 (48) defeat.
Q1:
Sandringham held the territory early in the quarter, slotting its first major in the first three minutes. Ollie Sanders and Lachie Fogarty delivered some clean possessions through the middle while Alex Mirkov’s height advantage gave him the upper hand in the ruck. Joel Trudgeon slotted the first for the Blues after some slick ball movement from Ed Curnow, while Lewis Young’s intercept work across half back was handy. Cooper Stephens picked up where he left off last season, clearing the ball from half back quickly and efficiently as Carlton tried to handle the repeat forward 50 entries from Sandringham. Ned Cahil was busy in the contest, buzzing around at the fall of the ball, using Paddy Dow and Curnow as exit points. Two late goals from the Saints pushed the margin out, but a goal from Josh Cripps in the final seconds of the term left Carlton seven points behind at the first change.
Q2:
The visitors were once again able to lock the ball in their forward half, with their strong aerial work causing issues for the Blues. St Kilda pinned the ball in and slotted two goals before Carlton were able to respond through the boot of Curnow. Fogarty continued with his strong tackle pressure, but the Saints were set up well behind the ball, able to turn it over to their advantage easily. An opportunistic goal from Jesse Motlop helped minimise the damage that St Kilda had done in the first 20 minutes of the quarter, while Will Hayes did some damage on the wing. The Blues improved late to get the ball into their forward half, but they weren’t able to make a sizeable impact on the scoreboard, trailing by 13 points going into half time.
Q3:
It was Carlton’s turn to dominate the territory in the early going of the territory, but couldn’t find a way through St Kilda’s backline. The Blues’ own defence - including the likes of Luke Parks and Stefan Radovavnoic - held up well, not letting the opposition take advantage of their forays forward. Zane Barzen’s accurate set shot saw the Blues finally get some reward for effort on the scoreboard, answering Sandringham by kicking the Blues’ first of the half. The last five minutes saw the tide turn, with quick movement through the centre seeing Cottrell goal after good work in the air by Jesse Glass-McCasker. That was followed quickly by a major from Cahill, seeing the Blues close the gap to a one-point deficit heading into the final term.
Q4:
An early goal to the Saints put the Blues on the back foot. Young was quick with the switch down back, but St Kilda managed to chop off any Blues transition at the halfway mark. Crocker and Cripps both had good looks inside 50 but couldn’t convert, while Goetz used his physical presence to bully his opponent. Despite the Blues looking to work their way into the game and get the go-ahead goal, they were unable to stop the sharp shooting of the Saints, who ultimately kicked four unanswered goals to finish off the game strong.
CARLTON VFL 2.0 4.2 7.3 7.6 (48)
SANDRINGHAM 3.1 6.3 7.4 11.6 (72)
GOALS
Carlton: Barzen, Cahill, Cottrell, Cripps, Curnow, Motlop, Trudgeon
BESTS
Carlton: Cahill, Glass-McCasker, Maher, Fogarty, Cottrell, Hayes
