Blues end Hawks' faint AFL finals hopes
Aug 19, 2017 - 1:59 PM Carlton gave Hawthorn and James Sicily a dose of unsociable football on the way to a rousing seven-point AFL win.The hard-fought 12.5 (77) to 10.10 (70) win on Saturday night at Etihad Stadium ended Hawthorn's faint finals hopes and broke their 14-game winning streak over the Blues.
It is their first win over Hawthorn since round six, 2005 and means Carlton cannot finish bottom with one round left.
There was plenty of niggle throughout the match, personified by Jed Lamb's match-up on Sicily.
They clashed repeatedly and Lamb won their duel, kicking two goals, as Sicily gave away a whopping seven free kicks.
The Hawks, who will miss the finals for the first time since 2009, became renowned for their hardness - dubbed unsociable football - during their three-premiership reign.
Hawks coach Alastair Clarkson said Sicily would learn from a tough match.
"He's getting smacked a fair bit and he's the retaliator - the umpires pay (the free against) the retaliator rather than apply the discipline to the Carlton player in the first instance, who's doing the hitting," Clarkson said.
"But that's footy, you live and you learn and we've been in that situation where we've done that too.
"We're on the receiving end this time, but plenty of other times we've been the team that's been able to dish that sort of stuff out.
"It's swings and roundabouts and it's just important that he and all our players understand that sometimes AFL footy doesn't always go your way."
Blues coach Brendon Bolton praised Lamb for his game on Sicily.
"It's just a negating role - you have to go and play tight, you have to be on the edge, that's the mindset required," Bolton said.
"Lamby did that quite well."
The win broke Carlton's eight-game losing streak and came on the night they honoured members of the 1987 premiership team who beat Hawthorn in the grand final.
There has been talk about whether Carlton have improved this season and Bolton said Saturday night's win showed their progress.
He noted that two seasons ago, at the same venue, Hawthorn mauled them by 138 points.
"We make decisions in terms of where we want to finish, not in terms of the bottom of the ladder, but decisions that are for the long term," Bolton said.
Clarkson said the loss would be a good experience for his young, developing team, who have shown strong signs after a poor start to the season.
"That's what is going to be the foundation of our next assault on silverware, but that looks a long way away right at the moment," he said.
"We're making some progress as a footy club."
While they pressed hard in the last quarter, the Hawks were unable to stop Carlton playing the game on their terms.
Carlton defender Sam Docherty was best afield, Hawks on-baller Tom Mitchell had a game-high 44 disposals and teammate Jaeger O'Meara made a successful return from his knee problems.
Source: AAP
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