Northern Blues senior coach Josh Fraser said there were a number of key learnings to take from the final practice match against Richmond.
The Blues were unable to overcome a slow start against the Tigers, going down by 22 points in a fiery pre-season hit-out.
With both teams fielding strong line-ups, Fraser said he was heartened by the way a number of youngsters stood up while acknowledging room for improvement from the game.
“All in all, I thought we continued to see glimpses from our young Carlton-listed players, and importantly from our VFL end as well,” Fraser said.
“We’ll make sure we do our homework on Port: they’re a really proud club, there’s a big occasion for them in Round 1 and we’re really keen to get our season off on the right foot.”
Among a host of names, Fraser praised the four-goal performance of a “really driven and focused” Harry McKay.
“I thought he was really good, Harry - he had a lot more involvements and he always works really hard on his game,” Fraser said.
“It was great to see him get reward for effort, he’s one among a number of names who Carlton fans should be really excited about.”
In the last dress rehearsal ahead of the VFL season opener in a fortnight, Fraser said he was confident the Blues were ready for Port Melbourne.
“I thought the boys fought it out really well, we were able to turn the heap up at different times and get some more experience and game-time to guys who will play really important roles for us,” Fraser said.
“We feel like we’re ready for Round 1, the last of our practice matches… we feel like we’ve built really well and we’re excited about Port Melbourne.”
Take a look at some of the Blues' youngsters in action at Punt Rd Oval:
Tom Williamson. (Photo: Tim Murdoch)
Cameron Polson. (Photo: Tim Murdoch)
Harry McKay. (Photo: Carlton Media)
Jesse Glass-McCasker. (Photo: Carlton Media)
