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CARLTON has suffered its second narrow loss in as many weeks, falling to a resurgent Fremantle by seven points at the Gold Coast Stadium on Saturday night.
The composed visitors led at every change to run out 13.10 (88) to 11.15 (81) winners, improving their record to 3-4 on the season.
Carlton, who fell to 3-4 with its second straight narrow defeat, was led by Heath Scotland, who had 35 touches, and youngsters Marc Murphy and Bryce Gibbs, who each had 31. Jarrad Waite had three goals, all in the second quarter.
For Fremantle, Paul Hasleby continued his stellar form with 32 possessions, while Aaron Sandilands was mighty with 25 possessions, seven marks and 42 hit-outs. Byron Schammer, Ryan Murphy and David Mundy each kicked two goals.
After Fremantle took a 13-point lead into the long break, Carlton made all the running in the first 10 minutes of the third term, but could manage just five consecutive behinds to only marginally reduce Fremantle’s lead. Against the run of play, Fremantle veteran Dean Solomon snapped a goal at the 11-minute mark, and when Mundy added his second for the match four minutes later, the visitors looked to have weathered the Blues’ storm, eking out a 21-point lead.
Carlton spearhead Brendan Fevola appeared to be struggling with injury opposed to Chris Tarrant as the Blues looked for a source for their first goal of the term, and it came from first-gamer Chris Yarran, with the Swan Districts youngster coolly slotting his first goal at the elite level at the 22-minute mark after roving a pack. Shaun Hampson replaced Fevola in the goalsquare for the Blues to provide a marking target up forward, and despite the play of Gibbs, who was everywhere in the third quarter, Fremantle managed to marginally extend its half time lead to take a 12.7 (79) to 9.10 (64) advantage into the final change.
With players from both sides tiring markedly, Murphy looked to have propelled the visitors to a match-winning advantage when he goaled on the run from 35m at the three-minute mark of the final term. His second major of the match gave Fremantle a 22-point lead, its largest of the match.
Fevola, barely sighted all night, then took a towering mark at the nine-minute mark and goaled; while it was just his fifth possession of the match, his set shot gave the Blues hope, reducing the lead to 15 points.
With the final term one of squandered opportunities, neither team could manage a major until Aaron Joseph snapped truly at the 23-minute mark for Carlton, reducing Fremantle’s lead to nine points. Jordan Russell then had a chance to get the Blues within three points after Fremantle gave away a questionable 50-metre penalty, but his drop punt from 50m was touched on the line by Sandilands for a minor score. Joseph had another desperate snap that missed inside the last minute, and with the Blues pressing, the siren rang to complete one of Fremantle’s more memorable wins.
Earlier, Fremantle took a 13-point lead into half time after a scintillating second term that featured an avalanche of 12 goals.
The visitors led 10.5 (65) to 8.4 (52) at the main break after extending their narrow two-point advantage from quarter-time. The visitors had nine individual goal-kickers in the first half, while Hasleby led the WA side with 20 first-half possessions, 12 of which came in the opening term.
Fremantle quickly extended its two-point quarter-time advantage when Brett Peake was gifted a goal after two minutes following an errant Waite kick inside Carlton’s defensive 50. Stephen Hill, last week’s NAB Rising Star nominee, then swooped on a tap from giant ruckman Sandilands and coolly slotted a goal from 35m, and the visitors had shot away to a match-high 15-point lead after just four minutes of play.
Waite was sent forward for the Blues, kicking three goals for the term, but the Blues could only kick consecutive goals on one occasion in the quarter, when Sandilands gave away a 50-metre penalty that resulted in a Murphy goal after 11 minutes. Just 90 seconds after Waite’s first major, it narrowed Fremantle’s advantage to eight points, and the young Blue onballer then missed a simple set shot from inside 50 halfway through the term.
The visitors made Carlton pay almost immediately when Scotland pushed Schammer in the back in a marking contest, with the West Adelaide junior slotting the set shot from the resultant free to extend Fremantle’s advantage. Schammer later became Fremantle’s only multiple goal-scorer to half time when he drilled a dead-eye set shot from 50m at the 21-minute mark.
Waite bagged his third for the quarter with a mark in the goalsquare at the 32-minute mark to make it an even dozen goals for the term.
Fremantle went into quarter-time with a 3.4 (22) to 3.2 (20) lead after a tightly-fought term that featured four lead changes.
Both sides entered the round seven contest as named.
Fremantle 3.4 10.5 12.7 13.10 (88)
Carlton 3.2 8.4 9.10 11.15 (81)
GOALS
Fremantle: Schammer, Mundy, Murphy 2, Solomon, Peake, Thornton, Sandilands, McPharlin, Hayden, Hill
Carlton: Waite 3, Cloke, Betts, Judd, Murphy, Hadley, Yarran, Joseph, Fevola
BEST
Fremantle: Hasleby, Sandilands, Schammer, Mundy, Ibbotson, Thornton
Carlton: Judd, Murphy, Scotland, Kreuzer, Waite, Gibbs
INJURIES
Fremantle: None
Carlton: None
Reports: Byron Schammer (Fremantle) in the fourth quarter for striking Marc Murphy (Carlton) by umpire McBurney.
Umpires: McBurney, Nicholls, Millison
Official crowd: 10,294 at Gold Coast Stadium
The views in this story are those of the author and not necessarily those of the clubs or the AFL.
