5 hits and howlers in Carlton Blues' Thursday night victory over Port Adelaide Power at the Adelaide Oval

Round 12 of the 2024 AFL season opened with a top-8 showdown between hometown Port Adelaide Power and the visiting Carlton Blues, with the Victorian club finishing the stronger to win by 36 points.

The match between third-placed Port and eighth-placed Carlton began with an evenly balanced first half, although Power coach Ken Hinkley would no doubt have been unhappy with six second-quarter behinds.

The Blues' halftime lead was fairly soon given up as the teams traded the lead in a pulsating third quarter, but this time it was Carlton whose kicking for a goal let them down.

Carlton's seven-point lead at the final change quickly became a 25-point lead that Port tried to bridge in vain, but after a Todd Marshall goal put them with within three goals, the dam burst as the Blues finished with three goals of their own.

The night ended with both sides in the top four, however, such is the evenness of the competition at the top of the ladder that both sides could slide on percentage.

5 hits and howlers in Carlton Blues vs. Port Adelaide Power

AFL Rd 12 - Port Adelaide v Carlton

#5 - Hit - Carlton find their third banana

Zac Williams backed up his strong goal-kicking performance from the previous round with another three goals to finish among the Blues' best. Harry McKay and Charlie Curnow also kicked three goals each to score 58 points between the trio. Williams was brought to Carlton in Free Agency from GWS, ostensibly as a midfielder, but the defense was where he found his level and where he stayed before his 2023 ACL injury, so this move forward is somewhat of a renaissance.

#4 Howler - Charlie Dixon's dirty night

The big Queenslander had a night to forget with only a solitary disposal, a handball, for negative four meters, and two tackles in 54% game time. The only positive for the former Suns key forward was that his 11 pressure acts hurried the Carlton defenders, so when he was subbed out in the third quarter for the fresh legs of Jeremy Finlayson, it was a relief for everybody.

#3 Hit - Tom De Koning's in the air

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Robbie Williams was stirred to put a song on about TDK during last year's final run and the Blues ruckman put in a similar performance in this match. 18 disposals, 28 hitouts, eight clearances, and eight score involvements in just 75% of game time was a dominant performance. When he was subbed off, it should have evened up the game, but the Blues slipped into ruck-by-committee and sped away anyway.

#2 Howler - Power disposal poor

In a match that was even for three quarters and still alive midway through the final quarter, there really wasn't much to separate the two sides apart from the six goals that made up the final margin. The only main differential stats were Port's poor disposal and far fewer inside 50s. Carlton was cleaner and it proved the difference in the end when the game was there to be won.

#1- Hit - Sam Walsh statement game

2018 number one draft pick Sam Walsh has missed four of Carlton's victories this year. In fact, they are undefeated without him and all their losses have been since he came back from injury. Despite averaging over 30 disposals this year, there have been murmurings that he isn't an elite player any longer. However, a 34 touch, 13 tackles, eight clearance games, with 550 meters gained, and seven score involvements will hush those talks as he was the best on the ground on Thursday.

AFL Rd 12 - Port Adelaide v Carlton