Round 3, 2026

Carlton 6.2 38 7.4 46 9.8 62 11.11 77 Melbourne 0.1 1 1.6 12 7.8 50 15.10 100
Venue:	MCG
Date:	Sunday March 29, 2026 (3.15 pm).
Result:	Lost by 23 points.
Crowd:	67,763
Goalkickers:
Reports:
Umpires:	Brett Rosebury, Alex Whetton, Nathan Toner, Martin Rodger.
Injuries:	Z. Williams (ribs), H. Dean (side/hip)
Ladder:	16th

Game Review

Dee-lightful! Melbourne produces epic comeback as Blues collapse again. The Demons have come from 43 points down to stun the Blues at the MCG. - By Gemma Bastiani.

Look away Carlton fans, it's happened again. After kicking the first seven goals of the game, and leading by as many as 43 points, the Blues coughed up another winning position to go down to Melbourne 15.10 (100) to 11.11 (77) in the increasing shade of the MCG on Sunday afternoon. Kysaiah Pickett led the charge for the Demons, putting the icing on his 19-disposal, five-clearance second half with a big goal, and Bayley Fritsch slammed home four second-half goals of his own. Carlton's third-quarter blues were on show once again. After holding Melbourne to just one goal across the opening half, the Demons piled on six in the third term to set up the almighty comeback. It wasn't until the 26-minute mark of the second quarter that Melbourne landed its first major off the boot of Harvey Langford, but it was exactly the kind of momentum shifter the club needed. With a different look around stoppage to start the second half – setting up to power through the contest from the back side, rather than trying to win front-side clearance – Pickett got to work.

His speed and dynamism through the middle of the ground asked questions of Carlton's defence for the first time all day, and his connection with forward pair Brody Mihocek (four marks, one goal) and Fritsch revved the engine for the Demons. And captain Max Gawn, in game No.250, turned a challenging first half, where he went toe-to-toe with a smart Marc Pittonet, into a dominant turn for home. It was a remarkable turnaround for Melbourne, which was the victim of the Blues' early control. Notably, it wasn't a manic kind of pressure that Carlton brought to set up its 37-point quarter-time lead, rather it was thoughtful positioning, and a diligent use of teasing distance every time Melbourne looked to exit defence. The home side owned territory, recording 22 inside 50s for the opening term and the Demons just five, and the only part of the Blues' game that was deficient in that time was that final kick going forward. But once Harry McKay (nine marks, one goal) started to exploit his speed advantage on direct opponent Tom McDonald, and Mitch McGovern (13 disposals, three goals) utilised his leap as the scoreboard started ticking over. Young gun Jagga Smith (25 disposals, seven score involvements) moved beautifully around stoppage, and kicked his first career goal to open proceedings, and key defender Harry Dean (10 disposals, six marks) was solid behind the ball alongside leader Jacob Weitering, before a high-flying spoil attempt saw him leave the field in discomfort. In tandem with fellow defender Lewis Young, they ensured Jacob van Rooyen remained a relative non-entity for Melbourne. When the going was tough for the Demons, it was Jack Steele working hard defensively, setting up his eventual tackle count of 16 for the game, and Caleb Windsor (24 disposals, 447 metres gained) tried hard to be creative and get the Dees moving forward.

Ruck byplay The game within the game was the match-up between rucks Marc Pittonet and Max Gawn, which proved enthralling all day. Understanding the Melbourne captain's capacity to dictate play, Pittonet worked exceptionally hard to draw Gawn deep into attack, and essentially remove him from the conversation as the Demons tried to transition the footy. And it worked, as Melbourne looked lost without Gawn's contested marking ability on the wing. Once Gawn began to challenge Pittonet back the other way, rather than simply being accountable for his own direct opponent, things started to shift for the Demons.

Green shoots What's better than a six-goal-to-nil opening quarter? Having two first-time goalkickers in the early onslaught. In game No.3, talented youngster Jagga Smith calmly went back from 45m out to slot the first goal of his career. It was the goal that got things started for Carlton, after it had failed to capitalise on repeat forward entries through the first eight minutes of the game. Seven minutes – and one handy Patrick Cripps goal later – it was debutant Talor Byrne with ball in hand from an almost identical position as Smith. With the ball sailing through, the vocal MCG crowd was on its feet, excited about the green shoots that were finally on show in the navy blue.

Carlton's mindset shift is telling In first halves, Carlton is playing to win. In second halves? It is playing to not lose. The clear shift in confidence is emblematic in how the Blues take the game on, and on Sunday afternoon against Melbourne it showed once again. To start the game the Blues were aggressive, quick, and well organised, but after the main break there was a tentative feeling about their approach to the game, giving up a 43-point lead to fall to the Demons. It opens the door for opposing sides ready for a resurgence. For the better part of a year, the Blues have been trying to address their significant downturn in second halves, but could it be as simple as playing to win as opposed to trying not to lose? – Gemma Bastiani

Best: J. Weitering, J. Smith, H. Dean, M. Pittonet, E. Hollands, S. Walsh.

Team

B:	33 Lewis Young	23 Jacob Weitering	35 Harry Dean
HB:	4 Ollie Hollands	11 Mitch McGovern	14 Oliver Florent
C:	32 Matt Carroll	9 Patrick Cripps (c)	31 Campbell Chesser
HF:	19 Will Hayward	40 Hudson O'Keeffe	6 Zac Williams
F:	39 Talor Byrne	10 Harry McKay	17 Brodie Kemp
Ruck:	27 Marc Pittonet	7 Jagga Smith	18 Sam Walsh
Interchange:	2 Lachie Cowan	29 George Hewett	20 Elijah Hollands
	12 Ben Ainsworth	44 Francis Evans
Coach:	Michael Voss
Emergencies:	8 Lachie Fogarty	37 Jordan Boyd	13 Blake Acres

In: Francis Evans, Talor Byrne
Out: Lachie Fogarty (omitted), Cooper Lord (illness)

Milestones

Debut: Talor Byrne
100 Games (Carlton): Mitch McGovern
First Goal: Jagga Smith, Talor Byrne

Interesting Facts

Talor Byrne scored a goal with his first kick.

Free Kicks

Carlton 11
Melbourne 16

Front Runners

1. Oliver Hollands 15.8km
2. E. Langden (Melb) 15.6km
3. George Hewett 14.2km
4. Lewis Young 14.0km
5. Lachlan Cowan 13.9km

Video

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Round 2 | Round 4