CARLTON interim coach Josh Fraser has praised captain Patrick Cripps for standing up in the last quarter as the Blues rode a wave of momentum after an emotional week.

The Blues snagged their first win since round one – and their first over the Western Bulldogs since 2022 – releasing the pressure valve at the club after a tumultuous season which culminated in head coach Michael Voss stepping aside on Tuesday.

BLUES v BULLDOGS Full match coverage and stats

Cripps, who has faced speculation over his future at the club, finished the game with 29 disposals, eight clearances and two goals, with 13 disposals and five clearances coming in the final term as the Blues overran the Dogs by 12 points.

"He's been under a fair bit of pressure," Fraser said of the skipper.

"A lot of commentary around 'Crippa', as there always is. He's just an incredibly impressive guy, the way he leads and the way he led tonight, the way he was able to execute his role but also organise and drive others to do so as well.

"He's had a great week. I mean, it's been a tough week for him, but the support he's given me, the way he's led the playing group, he's been outstanding."

Under Fraser, the Blues looked to engage the crowd, getting the supporter base back on side after a tough stretch.

Debutant Jack Ison was the perfect conduit to do just that, enthralling the nearly 40,000-strong crowd pre-match as he, teammate Zac Williams and Dog Arty Jones joined the Indigenous dance troupe during the Welcome to Country.

It was topped off with Ison kicking the sealer for his first major in the big time.

"I'm not sure I expected (the crowd to connect with Ison), but we had a focus tonight around the way we wanted to play to really connect with the crowd and our supporter base, and that was an important part of the way we wanted to play tonight," Fraser said.

"And Jack added to that, and really exciting to see him get his opportunity again. He's a great story, he's going to excite a lot of Carlton supporters over the years, but the way he was able to stand up in that last quarter as well, I think he had seven or eight possessions in that last quarter when the game was quite hot.

"So yeah, he's a bit of a cult figure already, which is fantastic. And his game's only going to continue to get better."

For Bulldogs coach Luke Beveridge, it was the contest that hurt them the most, as they slumped to a 5-5 result line after a strong start to the season.

"We were probably lucky to be in the game early because (Carlton) squandered some chances," Beveridge said.

"In the end, they overwhelmed us … it wasn't us who broke the shackles and came hard in that last quarter. There seemed to be a clear difference in the way players were covering the ground, and definitely a clear difference in the capacity to win the contest at ground level in particular. So, it's something that we're working on, we can't rely on the usual suspects to win that category."

Carlton won the contested possession count 140-109, and the clearances 36-27, with usual stars Marcus Bontempelli and Ed Richards smothered.

"Others need to pick up that vibe and that slack. Until they do, we're going to be a bit vulnerable," Beveridge said.

With such an extensive injury list, to which hard-running winger Bailey Williams has now been added after suffering a hamstring injury, competition for spots is at a low point for the Bulldogs.

Beveridge also confirmed that Riley Garcia, who was nearing a return from hamstring surgery, suffered another injury to his hamstring at training and will spend further time on the sidelines.

"We're asking a lot, we're pushing the envelope with our players, like even then in the post-match … we were pretty frank about where Carlton got us and where the improvements need to come from," Beveridge said.

"We've got to be honest about that if we want to expedite our improvement … we've always been at our best when there's been real competition for spots and I just said to the players, that really isn't there at the moment."