Carlton kicks Richmond out of AFL finals in thrilling elimination final comeback

CHRIS Judd limped around Visy Park at training on Saturday morning, bandaged to the eyeballs and looking every bit the footballing pensioner.

CHRIS Judd limped around Visy Park at training on Saturday morning, bandaged to the eyeballs and looking every bit the footballing pensioner.

Key defender Nick Duigan wasn't even in the side; the Blues emergency could have been in Sudan given Malthouse's scant use of him this season.

But, on a day in which a pulsating MCG fairly rocked with emotion and drama, the pair made glorious finals magic.

Late inclusion Duigan wasn’t in the side 20 minutes to game time, but Brock McLean’s warm-up injury allowed him to morph into 1970 hero Teddy Hopkins with four remarkable goals.

Full stats HERE in our match centre.

Juddy

And Judd just did what he always does.

The 30-year-old birthday boy mocked those who believed him a spent force,  changed the course of a game with the quarter from heaven.

Add in more finals heroes for a Carlton side that will not quit: inspiring captain Marc Murphy, defender Lachie Henderson and his courageous last-term stand, plus maligned duo Bryce Gibbs and Jarrad Waite.

That group combined to first claw back the ascendancy from 33 points down, then simply run Richmond ragged in front of a record elimination final crowd.

This Carlton outfit just refuses to die.

How many times have they climbed off the canvas this year?

First they were officially out of the finals race, then they were all but out of the race for ninth.

We'll be back soon

Jarrad Waite

Yet a week after the Blues came from 39 points in arrears and 29 points down at the last break against Port Adelaide, they conjured something identical yesterday.

The side that never belonged in September -- and needed history to get there -- suddenly has a path beckoning to a preliminary final.

BEST PICS FROM WEEK 1 OF THE FINALS

Didn't they deserve it, too, with master coach Malthouse pulling off if not a heist then at least another in his collection of great September wins.

Brandon Ellis

For three and a half quarters this game was an epic, and one that smacked of something bigger than an elimination final.

The national anthem's conclusion brought about a roar reserved only for Grand Finals.

For Tiger supporters it was a roar born of 12 years - and 264 home-and-away games full of pain, heartbreaking losses and false dawns.

Soon the MCG was fairly exploding, not only with people but expectation and raw nerves and emotions.

Nick Duigan

But despite those nerves Richmond simply smothered the Blues with clinical efficiency for a half that looked like the Tigers were about to break the game open.

They denied Mick Malthouse's team time and space, they smashed in at the contest, and despite a clearances imbalance they led by the better part of six goals just minutes into the third term.

In retrospect it could have been a false economy; three of their goals came from 50 metre penalties, and those clearance numbers would have worried coach Damien Hardwick.

To that stage Judd was untagged, and unremarkable and looking a candidate for whatever retirement home footballers head to.

Duigan had scored just six goals in his 42 games of football.

Trent Cotchin had kicked two monster goals to stretch the lead, Jack Riewoldt was selflessly dragging Michael Jamison from the action and the Tigers were on the verge of breaking this game open.

Blues win back respect

Judd might have had willing third-quarter accomplices in Gibbs (10 touches) and Murphy (eight disposals), but he was the game-changer in every way.

Tigers leave the field

His first five disposals of the term came in five minutes, as Carlton went from 33 points down to a point down in eight remarkable minutes.

The knee injury a distant memory, he won key touches forward of the ball, dominated the centre square, and won 11 touches for the quarter.

He demolished a Richmond side that was suddenly on the back foot, handing space to a Carlton side that does brilliant things with just that commodity

Duigan, so close to heading to Africa before being drafted two seasons back, decided it was his party to crash too.

He would kick two of those five goals in the surge that destroyed Richmond.

The dam wall would hold up until midway through the final quarter, but when it burst the Blues just flooded inside-50s and goals.

Mitch Robinson, who gave away a key free kick from a deliberately rushed point in the last term, more than made up for that error with his own blinding run to the line.

Malthouse revealed post-match Duigan was only in the side after Brock McLean's thigh gave way with the last kick of the warm-up.

''Well, Nick played very well. Brock's decision was very late. It was the last kick of the warm-up and we are lucky it wasn't the first kick of the game. It was a great effort by Nick Duigan but let's not confuse ourselves, players get prepared to play. I wouldn't be disappointed if any emergency wasn't prepared to play.''

On Judd's stupendous game he was even less effusive: ''Judd is good. Juddy is very good.''

Parting Shots

He was more than that.

He is a great of our game, dragging along the likes of Robinson after poor starts to this contest.

'Robbo is the full package,'' said Malthouse of Robinson's mixed day.

''He is a great coaching tester so I will leave it at that.''

This was to Richmond's triumphant coming out party, yet the only saving grace was that by final siren no one doubted who deserved this victory.

They might have come from the clouds, but no side coached by Mick Malthouse has ever quit, as Richmond learnt in such crashing fashion yesterday.

CARLTON 2.3 6.5 12.6 18.8 (116)
RICHMOND 3.5 10.7 12.10 14.12 (96)
Goals: Carlton: J Waite 4 N Duigan 4 E Betts 3 J Garlett 2 M Robinson 2 C Judd H Scotland R Warnock. Richmond: A Edwards 2 I Maric 2 T Cotchin 2 T Vickery 2 B Ellis C Newman D Martin J Riewoldt R Petterd S Tuck.
Best: Carlton: C Judd B Gibbs M Murphy J Waite E Betts N Duigan. Richmond: T Cotchin I Maric B Deledio D Martin N Vlastuin S Tuck.
Umpires: Simon Meredith, Mathew Nicholls, Luke Farmer.
Crowd: 94,690 at MCG.


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The Blues will now take on Sydney next Saturday night after the Swans went down to Hawthorn on Friday night.

While that result mat have been expected, Saturday saw a day of upsets.

Fremantle stunned Geelong at Simonds Stadium, in the process booking a home preliminary final at Patersons Stadium on Saturday September 21.

Later in the day, Port Adelaide kicked Collingwood out of the finals with a four-goal win.

Port Adelaide will now meet the Cats at the MCG on Friday night in a cut-throat semi final.