Australian Football

Match Report

The GWS Giants have made history, beating Carlton - and also winning two consecutive matches - for the first time in its short history, as it outlasted the Blues at the Sydney Showground on Sunday. Apart from a few brief moments in the first quarter and early in the second, the Giants led for just about the entire match, by as much as 25 points in the last term before surviving a late challenge to win by eight points. 

A very even and free-flowing first term saw scores level at 5.1 apiece at quarter time but the Giants made the second quarter their own. After the first goal of the term was kicked by Blue Bryce Gibbs, GWS kicked the last five via Callan Ward, Lachie Whitfield, Kristian Jaksch (in just his fifth game) and Jonathon Patton twice to establish a 21-point buffer at the long break. The Blues failed too make any real headway in the their quarter and still trailed by 14 at the last change. An early goal in the final term to Dennis Armfield did give Carlton some hope but Tom Boyd and Rhys Palmer, along with a string of behinds took the margin out to a game-high 25 points at the 16-minute mark. Late goals to Brock McLean and Troy Menzel (two) caused a minor scare for the Giants but they held on to record their inaugural win against the League's historically most successful club.

The breakthrough win was led by ruckman Shane Mumford, who had a phenomenal 55 hitouts and laid nine tackles, captain Callan Ward (29 disposals and eight tackles) and Dylan Shiel (10 tackles and 21 disposals). For the Blues, Mitch Robinson (31 possessions and nine marks), Bryce Gibbs (28 touches and four tackles) and Troy Menzel (three goals, five marks) all did their best to ensure Carlton stayed in the game until the end.

GWS now have a 4-9 record and a percentage good enough to take them up to 14th place on the ladder, ahead of Melbourne (also on four wins) and Richmond, Brisbane and St Kilda (three wins each). The Giants will attempt to make it three in a row meet Sydney at the SCG next Saturday night. That would seem to be a herculean task, with the Swans having won nine on end but GWS did beat them at home in round one. 

The Blues remain only a mathematical chance of competing in September now. They are four games adrift of the top eight and face sixth-placed Collingwood on Sunday night. 

GOALS
GWS: Palmer 3; Hoskin-Elliott, Shiel, Patton 2; Boyd, Kelly, Smith, Ward, Whitfield, Jaksch
Carlton: Menzel 3; McLean, Waite, Thomas 2; Armfield, Everitt, Walker, Tuohy, Gibbs

BEST - SPORTAL.COM.AU
GWS: Mumford, Shiel, Ward, Palmer, Coniglio
Carlton: Robinson, Gibbs, Judd, Menzel, Everitt

BEST – AFL.COM.AU
GWS: Mumford, Shiel, Ward, Palmer, Coniglio, Patton
Carlton: Robinson, Gibbs, Judd, Walker, Everitt, Menzel

INJURIES
GWS: Nil
Carlton: Murphy (hamstring tightness) replaced in selected side by Armfield, White (knee)

SUBSTITUTES
GWS: Nathan Wilson replaced Kristian Jaksch in the fourth quarter.
Carlton: Dennis Armfield replaced Simon White in the third quarter.

UMPIRES: Ryan, Jeffery, Mitchel

TELEVISION BROADCAST: Fox Footy

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