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St Kilda have savaged a severely understrength Carlton at Ikon Park, winning by 92 points.
The Saints, themselves missing several key players, dominated every facet of the game from the final moments of the first quarter onward, with Jack Steele, Jack Billings and Josh Bruce standing out in the win.
The Blues actually started the better of the two sides, having most of the early chances. But they struggled to convert and began to lose confidence, in what was to become a theme for the afternoon.
When St Kilda began to win their fair share of the ball, they were much more direct and ruthless, and extended a narrow quarter time lead at every change.
The second half was particularly one-sided, with the Saints kicking ten goals to two, as the young Blues found it almost impossible to string together possessions particularly when rebounding out of the backline.
With Bryce Gibbs, Marc Murphy, Kade Simpson and Sam Docherty all missing, and Patrick Cripps not quite playing a half, Carlton just didn’t have enough quality ball users or experienced leaders to implement any kind of strategy in the back half.
Still, they’d have to be disappointed in the performances of those who did play. It’s hard to identify a Blue who genuinely impressed, but Caleb Marchbank, Lachie Plowman and Jacob Weitering were impressive at times in an overwhelmed backline, while David Cunningham worked hard.
The output of veterans like Dale Thomas, Simon White, and recruits Billie Smedts and Rhys Palmer was underwhelming, especially as all of those players surely have yet to solidify their spot in Carlton’s round one team.
On the other side, there were several major positives for the Saints.
Jack Steele was one of the best on ground, with 25 possessions, eight tackles and two goals. The former Giant worked hard through the four quarters and played a genuine midfield role.
Josh Bruce tuned up for what will hopefully be a big year, taking advantage of the amount of supply with seven goals.
Billings and McCartin also had good games, while youngsters Long and Gresham showed some positive signs.
As a unit, St Kilda’s defenders were highly effective, forcing Carlton to play wide and indirect when the Blues did have chances.
Inasmuch as there’s anything to get out of this game against such weakened opposition, Alan Richardson would have to be happy about how his team performed with Nick Riewoldt, Leigh Montagna, Tom Hickey, Maverick Weller, Dylan Roberton and Jarryn Geary to be added back to the side before round one.
There’s no reason for Carlton to panic given the players they left out of today’s team, but they’d certainly want to play better in their final pre-season game in Perth after two ordinary efforts so far.
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