| Venue: Princes Park | Date: Saturday September 7, 1935 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Result: Win by 67 points | Umpire: Scott | Crowd: 12,000 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Goalkickers: M.Crisp 4.4, C.Denning 4.2, R.Cooper 2.4, G.Collard 2.3, A.Clarke 2.2, C.Davey 2.2, T.Pollock 2.2, B.Green 1.0, W.Mutimer 1.0, M. Johnson 0.4 rushed 0.1 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Best: J. Francis, M. Crisp, G. Collard, K. Shea, R. Cooper, E. Huxtable | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Reports: W. Mutimer (striking) - four matches | Injuries: K. Shea (bruised thigh) | |||||||||||||||||||
Game Review
Playing a mix of brilliant and indifferent football, Carlton was far too strong for an inexperienced Footscray side, recording a 67 point win on the eve of the finals. The Blues were never extended and had the game in the bag by half time.A sharp training session on Thursday night saw most players on the track. Keith Dunn (knee) and Gordon Mackie (bruised thigh) had not yet fully recovered and were not considered for selection. Alby De Luca would miss with a bruised shoulder and Soapy Vallence’s infected arm had ruled him out. Jim Park was omitted. Into the side came Mocha Johnson, recovered from his thigh injury, Clen Denning and Jack Cooper, as 19th man.
Carlton kicked against the wind in the opening quarter, with several early chances missed. Each side had promising attacks stopped, before Collard kicked the first goal with a strong punt kick. Pollock followed moments later with the second. The Blues were displaying fast and systematic play. Shea was winning in the centre and the stronger Carlton players were bustling their Footscray opponents as much as possible. Attacking persistently, Cooper brought up the third goal. Tight checking was keeping the Footscray forwards quiet, but the Tricolours scored their first goal with a long kick after some very good work in the forward line. Carlton was using the Northern wing as much as possible, with good results; two more goals being scored in the term. One was a gem from Crisp, after receiving from Francis, with a great kick against the breeze. At the first change, Carlton led by 26 points.
The Footscray defence cleared a couple of early attacks, before Cooper and Shea assisted Denning to the sixth goal. Carlton was playing well to position, but using too much handball on occasions and coming unstuck. Footscray, playing their best football so far, rallied and playing vigorous, forceful football, rattled on three goals in quick succession to get themselves back in the game. Applying the pressure again, Carlton responded in the best manner, displaying dashing defence, lightning-fast pace, magnificent team work and accuracy to score the next four goals. First, Crisp goaled after a weaving run through the forward line, then Cooper scored another moments later. Denning registered the ninth goal after marking near goal and when Shea’s long raking drop kick was beautifully marked by Mutimer, the tenth goal came up right on the bell. Both sides had showed brilliant and indifferent football in the quarter, but Footscray’s poor kicking near goal had been costly and contributed to their 37 point deficit at half time.
An early Footscray attack on the resumption just missed. Davey rucked strongly and sent the Blues forward but the Tricolours defended well and brought the play around the Northern wing. Huxtable relieved and shot a pass to Green, whose long kick scored goal number eleven. Attacking again, Pollock took a high mark and goaled, and moments later, Davey goaled with a clever kick from a tight angle. It had been a brilliant three minutes of play, with three goals coming after the Blues put the foot down. And just as quickly, they relaxed and Footscray, seizing the chance, kicked four of their own goals, after lifting as a team and playing some great football. Crisp restored the half time balance for Carlton with a late goal. Play had become heated, with Umpire Scott talking to several players on both sides as the quarter ended. Scores were even for the quarter, with the Blues leading by 37 points going into the last quarter.
From a scrimmage in front of their goal, Footscray snapped the ninth goal. Shea and Cooper attacked for Carlton but the Tricolours’ defence defended well and relieved. Attacking again, Pollock had a chance for a goal but slipped as he was about to kick and missed from a yard out. Footscray answered with their tenth goal to get within striking distance. It had been the brightest period of play for the game. Responding well, Carlton re-applied the pressure and scored two goals. First, Denning goaled after smart play in front and then Clarke, on the run, grabbed a Pollock miskick and brought up the 16th goal. Another came after Collard was heavily felled and goaled from the resulting free kick. Shea had injured his thigh and was replaced by Jack Cooper late in the term. The only interest left in the game was how much Carlton would win by, as they attacked continually right to the bell, scoring three more goals to record a comfortable 67 point victory over a determined but inferior side.
Carlton had finished the home and away season in the best manner with a good win, to sit in third place on the ladder, only two points behind Collingwood in second place, and ten points clear of Richmond in fourth place. This of course meant the Blues would meet their bogey team Richmond in the first semi-final. Carlton had good reason to be confident, finishing the first round with the highest number of points scored (1940) and the best percentage (141.57%). The injury list was small with most players set to be available for the finals. President Dave Crone urged supporters to ignore the ‘Richmond hoodoo’ talk. But for some, the record was difficult to ignore. Carlton and Richmond had met 64 times, with Carlton victorious in 42 of those games. But the nine finals matches played between the sides showed an interesting statistic. After winning the first two finals matches, Carlton had lost the following seven games. Would the Blues break the drought and progress to a preliminary final?
Team
| B: | 6 Fred Gilby | 21 Frank Gill | 1 Frank Anderson |
| HB: | 9 Eric Huxtable | 10 Jim Francis | 11 Jack Hale |
| C: | 27 Clete Turner | 8 Keith Shea | 32 Bob Green |
| HF: | 15 Maurie Johnson | 3 Wally Mutimer | 12 Creswell 'Mickey' Crisp (vc) |
| F: | 16 Ted Pollock | 34 Clen Denning | 31 Ansell Clarke |
| Ruck: | 17 Charlie Davey (c) | 13 George Collard | 19 Ron Cooper |
| 19th Man: | 33 Jack Cooper | ||
| Coach: | Frank Maher | ||
Milestones
Last game: Jack CooperRound 17 | Semi Final