OH what a night.

It took a 33-year first, but Jack Newnes' after-the-siren goal against Fremantle saw Carlton record its fifth win of the season.

So, how did it all happen?

Turning it around

During the week, Senior Coach David Teague mentioned Carlton’s need to stem the bleeding when opposition got on top.

The game looked like running away from the Blues as quickly as it had begun, with Fremantle kicking the first three goals of the game in wet conditions.

However, Carlton’s ability to stop the opposition from scoring and get the game back on its own terms was crucial to the eventual result.

After being beaten around the ground and in the contest during the opening term, the Blues comprehensively turned it around, winning the differential for disposals (+30), contested possessions (+23), inside 50s (+10) and on the scoreboard (+23) in the final three quarters.

Giving them a go

While the Blues were spearheaded by veterans such as Kade Simpson and Eddie Betts, there was still very much a youthful feel to their team on the weekend.

Of the 22 that run out on the field on Saturday night, 50 per cent of the team was aged 23 or under, while nine had less than 50 games of experience.

That was never more evident than in the winning circle post-match, with Tom De Koning (four games), Matthew Cottrell (two games) and Josh Honey (debut) all celebrating their first senior wins for the Club.

Winging it

Speaking of Cottrell, the second-gamer has been spoken about for his running ability ever since he arrived at the Club.

And alongside another second-year Blue in Sam Walsh, the running capacity of the two wingmen was crucial as Carlton made its charge.

Cottrell (eight disposals) and Walsh (six disposals) had more possessions in the final term than any of their teammates as the Blues took the game to the Dockers.

Their performances also allowed the Blues to use the senior body of Marc Murphy back at the coalface.

With his most centre bounce attendances for the season, Murphy (23 disposals) finished with 13 contested possessions — his most for the season.

Tackling it head on

All season, Carlton’s players and coaches alike have spoken of their desire to be known for their pressure.

In the last fortnight, that has clearly come to the fore.

After producing the most tackles of any team in a single game against West Coast, Carlton backed it up with its second-best performance of the year with 68 tackles.

The hero of the night in Jack Newnes led the way with eight (four inside 50), while Eddie Betts, Patrick Cripps and Will Setterfield all chimed in with six apiece.

Setterfield now has more tackles than any other Blue in the last six weeks (37).

It comes in threes

If you thought you had some deja vu with a late win over Fremantle in the West, you were right.

But then again, that would’ve been the case last year.

For the third consecutive victory over Fremantle, Carlton triumphed by exactly four points on the Dockers’ home turf.

Liam Jones was the hero back in Round 4 of 2016, while Marc Murphy produced the sidestep and banana in Round 15 last year.

Then, on Saturday night, there was Jack.

The Kernahan curse is over

Carlton supporters will be hoping that their post-siren luck - or lack thereof - has finally come to an end.

The stat has been widely reported that Newnes’ clutch set shot - dubbed ’the best since Blight’ - was Carlton’s first in 33 years.

Of course, that was kicked by Stephen Kernahan: but the Blues haven’t had much luck since then.

Since the turn of the millennium, Carlton has been on the receiving end of four after-the-siren wins: 2000 (Peter Burgoyne), 2001 (Ben Dixon), 2002 (Peter Riccardi) and 2020 (Robbie Gray).

That’s not even taking Blight into consideration. It’s about time.