Carlton’s dream finals run has continued with a thumping 46-point semi-final win on Saturday night, condemning Hawthorn to a straight sets finals exit for the second consecutive year.
Egged on by the 5645 fans in the crowd, Carlton’s exciting young players Sophie McKay, Mia Austin and Poppy Scholz lent into the theatrics of finals footy and post-goal celebrations to win 11.13 (79) to 4.9 (33).
Sophie McKay celebrates a goalCredit: AFL Photos via Getty Images
Earlier in the week, Carlton coach Matthew Buck said the team invited dance teachers to come to the club to “loosen up” before finals.
“They’re [the team] really great at balancing that fun with the hard work,” Buck said during a post-match press conference.
“So it’s do the work and have the fun and we’re starting to see if you’re relaxed and you enjoy that, you can play really great footy as well. So at the moment, we’re leaning into that really hard and we’re right riding that wave.
“Right up the front’s Poppy [Scholz] and Soph [McKay] and that’s fantastic.”
A jubilant Sophie McKay energised the crowd with her cheeky “fake hamstring” injury celebration last week. This time it was a fake shoulder injury seguing into a shimmy dance move, before shooting a grin at the crowd.
“How do we ever know if she’s injured?” Buck laughed.
Mia Austin kicked the opening goal for Carlton with a brilliant snap from the pocket, followed by another goal from star Sophie Mckay. The Blues struggled with conversion later in the term, but the Hawks failed to capitalise on their rivals’ inaccuracy and were left scoreless in the first quarter.
After copping a spray from frustrated coach Daniel Webster, Hawthorn amped their pressure in the second, rewarded by a much-awaited goal from Daisy Flockart. However, the fatigued and injury-ravaged Hawks were never really in the game and failed to mount a successful comeback.
The Hawks’ poor luck with injuries continued in the third quarter after Tilly Lucas-Rodd accidentally fired a ball into their own teammate, Eliza West.
Eliza West cops an accidental hit from teammate.Credit: Seven
It took a while for medics to get to West, who was promptly taken to the rooms to undergo a head injury assessment. She did not return to play and was ruled out with a concussion.
Repeated goals from Sophie McKay and sibling Abbie and Dayna Finn pushed the Blues into an untouchable place on the scoreboard to advance to their first prelim since 2019. They will face the Lions in Brisbane next week.
A shattered Hawthorn are now left in the same place as 2024 – with a straight sets finals exit again.
Coach Daniel Webster said the game was “lost in the first quarter”.
“The first quarter just kills you,” he said. “It’s a big final and you get smashed basically and that’s just disappointing. So it’s another thing we have to learn from, but shouldn’t happen.”
Webster said the team needed to improve their basic skill level and get used to the speed of finals.
“We’ll find ways to get better and keep working,” he said.
