The fairytale had to end at some stage for the Blues, and it happened at the MCG in front of more than 96,000 fans as the finals-hardened Cats flexed their muscles right when they needed to most.
Sam McClure rates every Carlton player’s performance from their elimination final.
Carlton
(2) Lachlan Cowan: Held his own when the defence was under considerable pressure in the second half. 6/10
(4) Oliver Hollands: He kicked an important goal but was a bit fumbly under finals pressure. 5/10
(5) Adam Cerra: Wasn’t able to display the kind of kicking proficiency that he’s shown previously under Josh Fraser. 5/10
(7) Jagga Smith: He was unbelievable early but well-tagged in the end and his impact was reduced. 5/10
(9) Patrick Cripps: The skipper tried hard all night and kicked an incredible goal. 6/10
(10) Harry McKay: He presented really strongly and was probably unlucky not to get rewarded with one or two more frees. 6/10
(11) Mitch McGovern: He was terrible – he had the sort of night he’d rather forget. 2/10
(12) Ben Ainsworth: He looked likely all night but couldn’t finish like he’s been able to do all year previously. 5/10
(13) Blake Acres: He missed a sitter early but competed really hard all night. 6/10
(14) Oliver Florent: He has been a real leader in the back 50 in the second half of the year and worked hard all night again against the Blues. 7/10
(15) Billy Wilson: He has quickly become one of their most important players, finishing with 26 disposals. 7/10
(17) Brodie Kemp: He’s had a great year and still hit the scoreboard, but he does go missing from time to time. 5/10
(18) Sam Walsh: The Blues’ best player, he just continued to break lines and run both ways. 8/10
(23) Jacob Weitering: He stood up under immense pressure, especially when Harry Dean went off for his concussion test. 8/10
(27) Marc Pittonet: He dominated the ruck for large portions of the game but couldn’t use his aerial presence to great effect. 7/10
(29) George Hewett: He dug in for the majority of the night and was typically tough. 7/10
(33) Lewis Young: He had a horror night, including making inadvertent contact with Dean’s head, which forced him off for a HIA. 1/10
(35) Harry Dean: He copped a loose boot from Young that effectively ruined his night. He still tried hard every minute he was out there. 6/10
(36) Cooper Lord: Two goals on the wing in a blockbuster MCG final is a great night. 7/10
(39) Talor Byrne: He just couldn’t find a way to have a genuine impact. 3/10
(44) Francis Evans: He was the best player on the ground early and finished with two goals. 7/10
(46) Matthew Cottrell: He plays an important role as a conduit and did some important things again in this one. 6/10
(47) Wade Derksen: He was excellent early and was far from the Blues’ worst throughout the night. 6/10
More to come
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Sam McClure is an award-winning AFL journalist and broadcaster.Connect via X or email.