Tigers smashed by BluesBy Jennifer Witham
5:00 PM Sat 02 Jul, 2011Richmond 1.4 4.6 6.8 12.9 (81)
Carlton 5.2 11.7 20.13 28.16 (184)
GOALS
Richmond: Riewoldt 4, Cotchin 2, Farmer 2, King, Vickery, Nahas, Houli
Carlton: Betts 5, Walker 4, Waite 3, Garlett 3, Robinson 2, Judd 2, Murphy 2, Simpson 2, Carrazzo, Gibbs, Ellard, Thornton, Russell
BEST
Richmond: Foley, Deledio, Houli, Nahas, Jackson
Carlton: Judd, Warnock, Betts, Robinson, Carrazzo, Murphy, Yarran, Garlett
INJURIES
Richmond: Griffiths (ribs)
Carlton: Waite (groin), White (knee)
SUBSTITUTES
Richmond: Ben Griffiths (ribs) replaced by Tom Hislop during the second quarter
Carlton: Simon White (knee) replaced by Ryan Houlihan during the third quarter
Reports: Nil
Umpires: Vozzo, Nicholls, Schmitt
Official crowd: 59, 650 at MCG
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CARLTON has stormed to its second-biggest win of the season with a comprehensive 103-point mauling of Richmond at the MCG on Saturday afternoon.
The Blues blitzed the Tigers across every line and increased their lead at every change, although an enormous nine-goal third quarter was instrumental in setting up the percentage-boosting 28.16 (184) to 12.9 (81) win.
The only thing that stopped the Blues from smashing their previous biggest winning margin of 115 points against the Tigers (set in round 14, 1984), was a six-goal final-quarter stand from the yellow and black.
But despite their Tigers equalling the number of goals they'd kicked in three quarters in the final stanza alone, the Blues nailed eight of their own and were still able to record their second-biggest win for the season after round two's 119-point defeat of Gold Coast.
Ladder-wise, the victory leaves the Blues in third but they could surrender that position before the end of the round if Hawthorn beat Collingwood on Sunday.
For the Tigers, the magnitude of the loss could prove to be disastrous as one of up to seven teams vying for a spot in the final eight, given their already low percentage will take a significant hit.
Before the game, the Blues' banner read, "Last week's game is in the bin, it's about today and a win"; an emphatic example of their intention to forget all about last week's 36-point loss to West Coast.
That focus was evident as early as the first quarter when they got the first goal of the game through Mitch Robinson - after Chris Judd pinched the first clearance - less than 30 seconds in.
The Tigers battled again in the opening stages of the game and lost the first quarter by 22 points after being dominated in the clearances 13 to six.
Losing the first term has become an alarming trend for the Tigers this year, winning only one (by one point, against Essendon in round nine) and drawing one (with Fremantle in round seven) in 14 games.
By half-time, their lethargy had seen them slip even further behind with the Blues owning the battle of the midfield.
Richmond coach Damien Hardwick told 3AW before the game he had laid down the challenge of taking on Carlton's engine to his crop of midfielders, and was confident they were up to it.
But, by the main break, the Tigers' top four ranked players in clearances this season - Trent Cotchin, Daniel Jackson, Dustin Martin and Nathan Foley - had registered just one between them.
Jackson and Cotchin got better after halftime and both had five clearances to their name by the final siren, but the Tigers lost the count 53 to 31 overall, and their seventh straight game - and second this season after round one's 20-point defeat - at the hands of the Blues.
Influential players
Chris Judd, after 17 touches against West Coast last week, was instrumental in the third term breakaway with five clearances, three inside 50s and two goals. He ended the afternoon having totalled those tallies at 11 clearances, 10 inside 50s, two goals, six scoring assists and 31 possessions.
Robbie Warnock was very important for the Blues as they climbed on top in the midfield with 40 hit-outs to Richmond's Andrew Browne, who managed just 18.
The Blues' forward line also fired on rapid with Eddie Betts kicking 5.2, Andrew Walker 4.2, Jarrad Waite 3.2 and Jeff Garlett 3.1. And in a new role, Lachie Henderson went back and performed well against Jack Riewoldt.
Quarter by quarter
FIRST QUARTER
Missing key defender Michael Jamison, it was Lachie Henderson who started on the dangerous Riewoldt and the Tiger forward immediately took the young Blue to the goal square. After his quiet game last week, Judd had two key possessions in the opening 30 seconds as Robinson kicked the first of his two goals in the quarter from a tight angle. The Blues' pressure and intensity at the contest was evident early, with the Tigers registering their first inside 50 at the 10-minute mark. Winning just one of 13 first quarters this season, Richmond managed its first goal through Jake King at the 19-minute mark. However, sloppy skills and an overuse of the handball were costing the Tigers, as goals to Bryce Gibbs, Kade Simpson and Andrew Carrazzo opened up a handy lead for Carlton at the first change.
Carlton by 22 points
SECOND QUARTER
With both sides trading points early, it was Judd who swooped on a loose ball and his snap landed in the hands of Eddie Betts for the first goal of the term. Ben Griffiths came off the ground looking the worse for wear after being crunched in a marking contest and was later substituted by Tom Hislop. Brad Helbig had a forgettable moment when he was caught holding the ball by Betts as the Tigers struggled to find a way through their opponents forward press. The Blues were afforded too much space through the midfield as they dominated the clearance count 27 to 11. Back-to-back goals to Riewoldt and Cotchin reduced the margin to five goals, but a 50m penalty given away by Dustin Martin handed the momentum back to the Blues as they extended their quarter-time lead.
Carlton by 43 points
THIRD QUARTER
Desperate for a spark, the Tigers started Martin forward to support Riewoldt who had looked dangerous when isolated on Henderson. But it was around the stoppages that the Tigers needed to address, as Warnock continued to feed the ball to his midfielders with ease. Judd again was in the thick of the action, kicking a memorable long goal from inside the centre square as the Blues defence continued to make the Tigers pay for their woeful disposal forward. With Jarrad Waite starting to find some form after missing the previous three weeks, the Blues ran rampant kicking nine goals to two as the shell-shocked Tigers had no answer to their opponents midfield dominance, with the centre clearances reading 16-3 in favour of the Blues.
Carlton by 89 points
FOURTH QUARTER
Things continued to get ugly for the Tigers, with early goals to Marc Murphy and Jeff Garlett extending the margin to three figures. The Blues kicked nine consecutive goals before Robin Nahas kicked truly to stem the rot. The Blues' forward line was on fire with Waite and Walker providing the tall targets forwards while Betts and Garlett would swoop on any crumbs. Between the four, they finished with 15 goals between them. Waite however finished the match on the bench getting attention to his groin in the only worry for the Blues. The Tigers kicked four of the last five goals to prevent the Blues recording their biggest defeat over the Tigers in their history. Carlton by 103 points
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