A WIN to remember.
Elijah Hollands stated that the Round 12 clash with Port was among his best wins in a Carlton guernsey.
With the storyline of the Adelaide Oval hoodoo and coming off a five-day break, the Blues were able to put the Power away in the last term, booting eight goals to finish with a 36-point victory.
“That was a fantastic win, it was one of the better ones I’ve played in for sure,” Hollands said.
“To be able to go away at a ground where we haven’t had much success but also against a side that is in really good knick and come home with the four points was great.”
Playing good footy for longer was on AFL Senior Coach Michael Voss’ agenda this week, and Carlton was able to execute its game plan strongly across the four quarters.
After an arm-wrestle in the first half, the Blues chipped away at the scoreboard, eventually able to break it open and get out to a convincing lead.
Hollands lauded his captain Patrick Cripps for his dominant fourth term, where the skipper kicked two goals in quick succession to start the quarter off with a bang.
“'Crippa’s' been doing that all year, he’s been leading us from the front in fantastic fashion and what he was able to do in the last quarter to help steer us over the line was pretty special,” he said.
“We knew we would have to play 120 minutes worth of good footy and being able to run over the top in the last quarter was a really good feeling.”
Playing a hybrid forward/midfield role, Hollands has been a welcome addition to the Carlton line-up, providing run, pressure and scoreboard impact.
Against Port Adelaide, Hollands managed 18 disposals, eight score involvements and four tackles. Thriving on the ability to rotate between the two lines, the 22-year-old is loving his time in Navy Blue, and hopes he is taking the right steps to earn the respect of his teammates.
“I’ve been able to get to a few centre bounces over the last couple of weeks and have also been able to slide forward still,” he said.
“The coaching staff and the boys have backed me in since I got here, I was able to put away a good summer and then now since stepping in, I feel like I’ve been able to contribute and still building with the boys.”
Looking ahead, Hollands is excited at the prospect of facing another big crowd when the Blues take on the Bombers in Round 13.
Noting the 90,000-plus crowds that his brother Ollie played in front of were a huge draw card for him when considering moving, he also is learning about the Carlton history and some of the important rivalries that come with wearing the jumper.
“I remember watching Ollie’s first couple of games that were around 90,000 and thinking it would be cool to do myself,” he said.
“The rest of my family were Carlton fans growing up, so they were enriched in [the rivalry]. I’m figuring it out now, but it’s very special. There’s a lot of history between these clubs and to be able to play a part in building the new history is pretty cool.
“[Essendon is] also going well, I feel like we’re rolling into some good sides at the minute which is good for us because we want to test ourselves against the best.”
