1. Melbourne's midfield holds firm despite missing men
Co-captains Jack Viney (foot) and Nathan Jones (quad) were missing while Dom Tyson was also out with a knee complaint. It made for an interesting problem for Demons coach Simon Goodwin. Having some of his best players out meant he needed others to step up, while the stars needed to be at their very best. It's fair to say they didn't disappoint. Jordan Lewis showed the leadership he was brought over from Hawthorn to provide in collecting 24 disposals despite being roundly booed by Carlton fans every time he touched it. That stemmed from the incident in round two when Lewis fractured Patrick Cripps' jaw. Clayton Oliver was instrumental with 29 himself, and a courageous mark going back with the flight early in the last quarter that put himself at the mercy of oncoming players. Christian Petracca was almost impossible to tackle while Jayden Hunt, Alex Neal-Bullen and Bernie Vicne all had their moments stepping up when required. Oft-maligned former Bomber Jake Melksham kicked the go-ahead goal to give the Dees a lead they didn't relinquish late in the final quarter.
2. These Blues won't quit
Brendon Bolton's men have been tough to put away all season and it was no different on Sunday. They lost gun onballer Patrick Cripps to a left leg injury in the second quarter while backman Simon White was hurt later in the term with a left knee concern. There's no quit in these Blues though. They started the final term on fire, with a couple of crunching tackles from Sam Docherty (on Jordan Lewis) and Jed Lamb (on Neville Jetta) setting the tone. Sam Petrevski-Seton, Jack Silvagni and Marc Murphy all showed smarts and nous to slot goals that put the Blues up by nine points about five minutes into the final term. Melbourne managed to hit back and escape with an eight-point victory but Carlton fans would have to be optimistic about their side's prospects over the next few years.
3. Carlton's forwards show promising future
The Blues have struggled to score this season and entered the game ranked last for points per game. That's no surprise, considering the lack of established goalkickers up there. However, there is certainly some promising talent Brendon Bolton will have to deploy over the next few years. Charlie Curnow would have to go close to becoming the fifth Blue to be nominated for the NAB AFL Rising Star this week after an excellent display in attack. He finished with 19 disposals and two goals. Several of his marks were impressive, but one on the lead in the first quarter when he bodied Oscar McDonald at the right time belied a person playing just his 20th game. Meanwhile, Sam Petrevski-Seton showed his awesome class when he opened the scoring in the final quarter with a snap pressed up against the boundary line that dribbled through, to close the margin to three points. With Jack Silvagni a smart operator and Jacob Weitering and Harry McKay offering tall options, Carlton has the making of what will eventually be a formidable forward line.
UNBELIEVABLE! That's got to be a @coateshire Goal of the Year contender from Sam Petrevski-Seton 😱 #AFLBluesDees pic.twitter.com/lEA2HqnqNn
— AFL (@AFL) July 9, 2017
4. Hogan's inspirational return
It was an inauspicious start for the Dees forward in his return from surgery for testicular cancer. In-form Blue Liam Jones was assigned the task of minding Hogan and often played 5-10m off Hogan. Hogan's first chance at goal came when he was streaming into the forward line by himself, but the West Australian perhaps had too much time, botching the shot on the run. After finishing the first term with just two disposals, Hogan started the second quarter in the midfield. While he didn't have much of an impact around the ball, having the run around seemed to spark Hogan into action. He went forward later on and marked and goaled, much to the delight of the Melbourne faithful. It was a quiet day for Hogan as he notched up 10 disposals but he'll be better for the run.
Welcome back, Jesse Hogan 👌 #AFLBluesDees pic.twitter.com/hzYqin97N3
— AFL (@AFL) July 9, 2017
5. Oliver with something to say
Young Melbourne midfielder has already shown he's not shy about making his opinion known, when he defended himself vigorously against accusations of staging after an incident with West Coast defender Will Schofield earlier this season. He became involved in a verbal stoush with a Blues fan in the second quarter. The ball went out-of-bounds and a supporter leaned over the fence to offer some advice. Oliver had started walking away to get ready for the throw-in but stepped back for a short and seemingly fiery retort. It didn't appear to put the Demon off – he racked up 29 disposals in Melbourne's eight-point win.
Clayton Oliver and some Carlton fans shared an exchange. #AFLBluesDees pic.twitter.com/ibexsENgIK
— AFL (@AFL) July 9, 2017
