AFL finals 2024 elimination final: Carlton sent packing at the Gabba as Lions set up clash with Giants

BRISBANE LIONS 14.15 (99) d CARLTON BLUES 11.5 (71)

Struggle town: Harry McKay and the Blues are going nowhere.Credit: AFL Photos

KEY POINTS

A year gone begging for the Blues
For Carlton, it all fell apart in the first half. But really, things began to fall apart much earlier, with a well-documented string of injuries, a resultant loss of continuity in personnel, and an inability to settle on what their best team looked like when they had the availability. It caught up with them tonight. For talent, we know they’re a better team than a beaten elimination finalist, particularly in a year as even as this one. But they lacked the luck that every premiership side needs, and have newly appointed high-performance manager Rob Inness, formerly with the Swans joining for the new campaign. Their window hasn’t closed yet.

Don’t let Zorko run free
Dayne Zorko has been many things in his football career – a magician, an antagonist, a leader, and a pest. One thing that’s never changed, however, is that he’s a beautiful user of the ball, and a brilliant decision-maker. So you don’t want to give him too much space. Zorko tore the Blues apart in the first half, always putting his teammates in a better position, starting scoring chains, playing a captain’s game without the title. Ollie Hollands went to him in the second half and was able to curtail him, but the damage was done. It was one of the best finals of the 35-year-old’s career.

Dayne Zorko.Credit: AFL Photos

Questions over Lions remain
Even after slaughtering Carlton in the first half, the Lions struggled to finish the job. Easy shots went begging, the door was (for a while) left ajar, and you could see some players retreat into their shells, especially in front of goal. Shot after shot went astray, raising questions over whether this side has the mental fortitude to progress much deeper into September. No player looked more afflicted by nerves than Eric Hipwood, who butchered the ball all night. The Lions will be on the road next week with an elimination semi-final against GWS Giants in Sydney. They will be a much harder team to overcome than the beaten-up Blues tonight.

KEY STATS

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Carlton coach Michael Voss has defended the decision to start Tom De Koning as the substitute on a night the Blues’ season ended in a 28-point elimination-final loss to the Brisbane Lions at the Gabba.

The Blues rolled the dice and recalled six players from injury for the knockout clash, including athletic ruck De Koning, who was a surprise substitute considering most teams use a running midfielder in this role.

After the Blues became the first team in 50 years to fail to score in the first term of a final, De Koning was activated early in the second term, replacing Matt Kennedy, and had an immediate impact with his efforts in the ruck and around the ground. The Blues, scoreless and trailing by 60 points, soon began to generate momentum, and booted two quick goals.

All over: It was rugged night for Blues coach Michael Voss.Credit: AFL Photos via Getty Images

In his post-match press conference, Voss said the Blues had to make a tough call, having had six changes, including De Koning returning from a fractured foot and collapsed lung.

He returned alongside Harry McKay, Adam Cerra, Mitch McGovern, Zac Williams and Sam Docherty, who made a miraculous return from an ACL rupture in round one.

“We had three guys that had missed one or two weeks, so they have played a body of work over the course of the season. That doesn’t really impact them. Then we had the other ones which namely were ‘Doc’ [Docherty] and ‘Cez’ [Cerra] and Tom,” Voss said.

“We tried to manage Tom’s minutes a bit at the start of the game. We ended up activating him when we did, we were left with no choice because of the way the scoreboard was rolling.

“I would love his availability, there is no question about that. If we had our way, we would love to start them all at the same time. But we had to manage a very unusual, a very unique, set of circumstances. Tom was probably one or two runs short of putting in a 100 minutes. The option was to play him or not play him, or play him in that scenario. We chose to activate him, and I am pleased we did because we needed a presence down the line, clearly forward of the ball we couldn’t win many contests. They [Lions] were able to dominate in the air and on the ground for large parts of that first half.”

Voss said the Blues had a plan to subdue veteran Lions playmaker Dayne Zorko, but the team just did not execute well enough. Ollie Hollands was sent to him later in the game. Zorko finished with 29 disposals and was arguably best afield at half-back.

The Blues were a legitimate premiership threat in early July when second on the ladder but won only two of their final nine games of the season - against strugglers North Melbourne and West Coast.

Injuries hurt, but too much was left to skipper Patrick Cripps, while the Blues never boasted an elite defence.

“The reality is, probably tonight was a small sample of what our season has been - it hasn’t been consistent enough. When you are not consistent enough, it compounds over time,” Voss said.

The Lions advance into a knock-out semi-final against Greater Western Sydney on Saturday.

Here’s what league headquarters has released tonight about next weekend’s games ...

Friday, 13 September
Second semi-final, Port Adelaide vs Hawthorn, Adelaide Oval, 7.10pm ACT/ 7.40pm AEST

Saturday, 14 September
First semi-final, GWS Giants vs Brisbane Lions, ENGIE Stadium, 7.30pm AEST

As the minor premiers, the Sydney Swans will play in the Friday night preliminary final the following week against the winner of Port Adelaide and Hawthorn. The Geelong Cats will host the winner of GWS Giants and Brisbane Lions at the MCG in the Saturday preliminary final. Timings of both games will be confirmed following the completion of week two of the 2024 AFL finals series.

BRISBANE LIONS 14.15 (99) d CARLTON BLUES 11.5 (71)

Struggle town: Harry McKay and the Blues are going nowhere.Credit: AFL Photos

KEY POINTS

A year gone begging for the Blues
For Carlton, it all fell apart in the first half. But really, things began to fall apart much earlier, with a well-documented string of injuries, a resultant loss of continuity in personnel, and an inability to settle on what their best team looked like when they had the availability. It caught up with them tonight. For talent, we know they’re a better team than a beaten elimination finalist, particularly in a year as even as this one. But they lacked the luck that every premiership side needs, and have newly appointed high-performance manager Rob Inness, formerly with the Swans joining for the new campaign. Their window hasn’t closed yet.

Don’t let Zorko run free
Dayne Zorko has been many things in his football career – a magician, an antagonist, a leader, and a pest. One thing that’s never changed, however, is that he’s a beautiful user of the ball, and a brilliant decision-maker. So you don’t want to give him too much space. Zorko tore the Blues apart in the first half, always putting his teammates in a better position, starting scoring chains, playing a captain’s game without the title. Ollie Hollands went to him in the second half and was able to curtail him, but the damage was done. It was one of the best finals of the 35-year-old’s career.

Dayne Zorko.Credit: AFL Photos

Questions over Lions remain
Even after slaughtering Carlton in the first half, the Lions struggled to finish the job. Easy shots went begging, the door was (for a while) left ajar, and you could see some players retreat into their shells, especially in front of goal. Shot after shot went astray, raising questions over whether this side has the mental fortitude to progress much deeper into September. No player looked more afflicted by nerves than Eric Hipwood, who butchered the ball all night. The Lions will be on the road next week with an elimination semi-final against GWS Giants in Sydney. They will be a much harder team to overcome than the beaten-up Blues tonight.

KEY STATS

Carlton’s season is over after a 28-point loss in a knockout final to the Brisbane Lions at the Gabba on Saturday night. The Lions now face Greater Western Sydney in a semi-final.

The Blues may finish with a respectable score on the board tonight, but it doesn’t matter.

A 10-goal deficit was always going to be too hard to rebound from. But why did it get to that stage? A deep dive is needed.

Recalling six players was always questionable. But there’s a deeper issue … they won only two of their last nine games, and those wins were against North Melbourne and West Coast.