3 minute read

Geelong have made Carlton pay for a horror day of goal kicking, overcoming a slow start to beat the Blues by 26 points in their AFL clash at the MCG.

Carlton coach David Teague has lamented a goal kicking horror show and poor execution by foot generally after the Blues kicked themselves out of their 26-point AFL loss to Geelong.

The Blues more than held their own in the opening half but kicked just two goals - and 13 points - across the first three quarters, with the Cats finding another gear after halftime to kick away for a 10.10 (70) to 5.14 (44) victory in front of 31,834 fans at the MCG.

"There seems to be a bit of a trend for us that if we start missing early - whether the next guy feels the weight or the pressure of it and we've got to get better," Teague said.

"You don't win games kicking at goal like that and at the end we had one less shot than them but the supply and demand - they just had too much."

Teague believed the goal kicking issues were psychological, with players needing to settle on routines, rather than necessarily needing more practice.

While happy with the Blues' defensive efforts, he said their ball use "wasn't up to standard" and lamented decision making and execution heading forward.

The game was a missed opportunity to beat a top team but Teague wasn't focused on getting a "scalp".

"If we get it together we'll get a scalp and it will give us great belief," Teague said.

"But in terms of right now, we're just going to continue to work on getting better."

Tom Stewart was excellent behind the ball for Geelong and Zach Tuohy was busy throughout, while Carlton's Sam Walsh (35 disposals, two goals) was brilliant.

Jacob Weitering kept Tom Hawkins goalless, with Teague lauding his undersized backline.

Carlton lost defender Liam Jones (lower back) and forward Levi Casboult (knee swelling) before the bounce but Teague was hopeful the pair would be fit to face Collingwood.

Charlie Curnow is poised to make his long-awaited return via the VFL next week but Teague said Marc Murphy (calf) was unlikely to face the Magpies as he pushes to reach the 300-game mark.

Teague said Zac Williams had his ankle stood on but expected him to be okay, while skipper Patrick Cripps pushed through a corked thigh.

Geelong's win tightens their grip on a top-four spot, with coach Chris Scott pleased with how the Cats ground out the game.

"Early even though we didn't get much ascendancy on the scoreboard, the game was looking a little bit more like the way we wanted it to be," he said.

"... It wasn't anything on the coaches box that improved the game necessarily in the second half.

"It might have helped (with) the margin but it was more the execution of the players and what we were trying to do."

Scott said Gary Rohan had a cork and the Cats would see how he pulled up ahead of Thursday's clash with Fremantle.