THE blowtorch is back on AFL cellar dwellers Carlton after they suffered a demoralising 93-point loss away to GWS Giants on Sunday.
The 20.18 (138) to 7.3 (45) result represented the Blues’ (1-8) biggest loss of the season, while the Giants (6-3) moved back up to third with their largest victory of the campaign.
The Giants dominated every statistical category bar hitouts, in what at times looked little more than a training run, as Carlton failed to put any defensive pressure on the free-running home side.
GWS piled on seven straight goals in the first quarter and 15 out of 16 in the first half after Carlton’s Harry McKay booted the first major of the game.
GWS brought up a century of points less than ten minutes into the second half and were up by as much as 99 in the final quarter, but kicked a string of behinds to save Carlton the indignity of losing by a three-figure margin.
Giants forward Jeremy Finlayson equalled his carer best haul of five and Harry Himmelberg and Brett Deledio kicked three with the latter playing his first game since round three.
Neither of the Giants two leading all-time goalkickers, Jeremy Cameron, the Coleman Medal leader, and Toby Greene, kicked a major, with Cameron going goalless for a second straight week.
Carlton champion Patrick Cripps cut a frustrated figure and was held to a season-low 12 disposals by Giants tagger Matt de Boer, who got 27.
Carlton’s cause wasn’t helped by losing Marc Murphy to a rib injury in the first quarter after he got hit by Giants ruckman Shane Mumford, while David Cunningham withdrew before the game with soreness.
GWS also finished the game a man down with dashing defender Zac Williams off the ground for the second half with a tight hamstring
McKay kicked the Blues’ only two first half goals and finished with three.
GWS also finished the game a man down with Williams off the ground for the second half with a tight hamstring.
© AAP 2019
GREATER WESTERN SYDNEY 7.5 13.9 18.14 20.18 (138)
CARLTON 1.1 2.1 5.2 7.3 (45)
Goals: Greater Western Sydney: J Finlayson 5 B Deledio 3 H Himmelberg 3 L Whitfield 3 B Daniels 2 A Kennedy A Tomlinson H Perryman T Taranto. Carlton: H McKay 3 E Curnow J Silvagni M McGovern Z Fisher.
Umpires: David Harris, Nathan Williamson, Cameron Dore.
Official Crowd: 9,599 at Giants Stadium.
