http://www.blueseum.org/tiki-read_artic ... 134&page=5ROUND 5
A look back through Carlton’s record in the fifth game of the season shows that we have introduced a galaxy of future stars in this round, and won most of the milestone matches that circumstances have tossed up. What is surprising however, is that for a club accustomed to regularly pulverising the opposition, we have won by ten goals or more only three times over the years in round 5, while suffering defeat by the same margin on four occasions ourselves. As for draws, there has been just the one - way back in 1921. Some of the Blues’ greats have been farewelled at this point in the season, while our gun forwards have kicked plenty of goals. There have been lots of highlights, very few lowlights, and as always, plenty to reminisce about.
THREE BIG WINS
Carlton’s record winning margin in round five stands at a relatively-modest 89 points, set in 1919 when the Navy Blues steamrolled Melbourne at Princes Park. We were fifth on the ladder prior to that game, but leapt to third afterward with a percentage of 211.93. Percy Daykin was a star for the Blues, with four goals.
In our Premiership year of 1968, Carlton went closest to topping that effort when we destroyed Footscray by 72 points in another big home-ground win. Full-forward Brian Kekovich kicked 6 majors, and once again we dramatically improved our ladder position, from eighth to fourth.
In another Premiership season in 1981, St Kilda fell to Carlton at Moorabbin Oval in a spectacular match that ended with Carlton destroying the host side by 64 points. Led by former Blues champion Alex Jesaulenko, the Saints started chock-full of confidence. They kept the Blues goalless in the first term, and set up a handy lead of 20 points with precise, open football.
But after that it was all Carlton. With ex-Saint Val Perovic impassable at centre half-back, and ruckmen Mike Fitzpatrick and ’Wow’ Jones dominating the stoppages, rover ((Rod Ashman? had a picnic all around the ground. Fitzpatrick went to centre half-forward after the main break, and kicked four goals in nine minutes against the wind, while the Blues piled on 19 goals after quarter-time to run out easy winners.
OUR ONLY DRAW
For the second time in three games, West Australian Harry D. Morgan kicked five goals for the Blues in a hard-fought fought draw with South Melbourne at the Lake Oval in round 5, 1921. Almost ninety seasons later, this remains the only draw involving Carlton in round five, although the week beforehand, we had also finished all square with Fitzroy at Princes Park.
BIG ARRIVALS
One of the first real stars to take the field for Carlton on debut in game five was brilliant South Australian wingman George Bruce, in 1903. He very quickly formed a superb centre line with Rod McGregor and Ted Kennedy, and helped take Carlton to our first treble of Premierships in 1906-07-08. Next was Gordon Green in 1911, who captained the Blues a decade later, and played in our 1914 and 1915 flag teams. Sadly, the career of Alf Baud – who made his debut in round 5, 1913, and was once described as a better player than Hadyn Bunton – ended when he was badly wounded in World War 1.
Another future captain in Maurie ‘Mocha’ Johnson came along in 1927, followed by the rare talent of another WA import, Ron ‘Socks’ Cooper in 1932. In 1945 - the last year of World War II - 17 year-old Ken Hands started in round 5, went on to play in the ‘Bloodbath’ Grand Final triumph, and launched a career that would eventually lead to the captaincy of the Blues and a worthy place in the Carlton Hall of Fame.
Few realised it at the time, but round 5, 1969 was a very special occasion for the Carlton Football Club – and not only because the Blues defeated South Melbourne by 25 points. On that Saturday afternoon at Princes Park, on May 3, 1969, a quiet, ambitious youngster from Jacana sat on the reserves bench for the first of his 356 matches for the Navy Blues. His name was Bruce Doull, and included in that tally would be no fewer than six Grand Finals (and four Premierships) for the champion later recognised as one of the greatest defenders ever to have played the game.
Another Hall of Fame inductee in Rod Ashman started his career in 1973, before going on to play in Carlton’s 1981-82 flag sides. ‘Ashy’ too, will forever be revered at Princes Park for his long career of 236 games, and his well-deserved place in Carlton’s Team of the 20th Century. In more recent times, round five has provided the launching pad for the exploits of popular 1995 Premiership defender Michael Sexton (in 1990) and boom number 2 draft pick Andrew Walker, in 2004.
FOND FAREWELLS
The list of prominent Blues who have retired after round five includes former captain-coach Jack Wells in 1914, and two-time Premiership full-back Ernie Jamieson in 1922. Harold Carter, who crossed to Carlton from Fitzroy and won our club goal-kicking award in 1927, retired the following year, and Jim Knight came to Carlton when Geelong went into recess in 1942, only to be tragically killed in action in New Guinea not long after his last game in round 5, 1943. Premiership wingman Bob Green also lost his life in freakish circumstances, four years after he finished up in 1945.
Another favourite son; three-time Premiership forward and future flag-winning coach Robert Walls retired in 1978 – after the same game in which Ken Hands started his career - while in 1992, the versatile and popular Paul ‘Molly’ Meldrum called it a day after round five, following 158 quality games and 140 goals over eleven seasons.
CHOPPING UP DEFENCES
During the first decade of this century, round five was a happy hunting ground for Carlton’s talented, controversial spearhead Brendan Fevola. In successive seasons, Fev kicked eight goals against North Melbourne in 2003, and six against West Coast in 2004. He then followed up with another seven against Melbourne at the MCG in 2008. Fevola’s effort against the Kangaroos stands as Carlton’s equal-best for round 5, matching the eight majors kicked by Harry ‘Soapy’ Vallence against Collingwood back in 1938.
‘Soapy’ in fact had some memorable matches in this round against Collingwood throughout his great career. As well as that mentioned above, he steered through seven at Victoria Park against the ‘pies in 1931, and two years later in the corresponding match, launched a monster torpedo punt that split the posts from a distance later measured at more than 91 yards (83 metres). Soapy’s predecessor, Horrie Clover, also kicked seven against Collingwood in a round 5 game at Victoria Park in 1924.
Rover Leo Brereton achieved a rare double when he booted successive six-goal hauls in this round, against Essendon* at Windy Hill in 1960, and North Melbourne at Arden St the following year. Harcourt Dowsley (1941, against St Kilda) and Vin Waite (1966, against Melbourne) both scored goals with their first kicks at senior level.
LINES IN THE....OVAL
When the South Melbourne team emerged from the player’s race at Princes Park in round 5, 1977, they were confronted by a series of dark-green lines painted on the oval at both ends of the ground. It was later revealed that these were distance markers, at 30, 40 and 50 metres from goal. The Blues had been practising hard with them, too, because by the end of an entertaining match, Carlton had kicked 21.8 (134) to comfortably beat the Swans’ 16.11 (107). In its wisdom, the VFL immediately banned the lines, but in time sanity prevailed, and by the early eighties every VFL ground featured the now-familiar 50 metre arc – an innovation that has added a whole lot of interest and enjoyment to the game for every football fan.
THE ODD BAD DAY
Margin-wise, Carlton’s worst defeat in the fifth game of any season came in the foundation year of the VFL in 1897. After the Blues lost to the Melbourne Fuchsias by 81 points, The Argus newspaper said; “In the many games that Carlton and Melbourne have played over the last 20 years, the strength of one side, and the weakness of the other was never more farcibly shown".
It took almost another decade to turn things around, but since then, our only other defeats by ten goals or more have come in 1958 against Collingwood (73 points), 1925 against Geelong (72 points) and 1983 against Fitzroy (60 points).
HIT THE SIREN, HIT THE SIREN!
In rare circumstances at Moorabbin Oval in round 5, 1967, the siren failed to sound at half-time, and the game continued for 20 seconds longer than it should have. During that vital period, Carlton defender Barry Gill kicked one of his two goals for the match, and the Blues ended up beating St Kilda by five points. Ultimately, that loss cost the reigning premier Saints a finals berth.
MILESTONES
Over the seasons, game five has been a big host of milestone matches. John Nicholls (1963), Mark Maclure (1979) and David Rhys-Jones (1991) all played their 100th VFL/AFL game in this round. One of the stars of the 1995 Premiership, Peter Dean, racked up his 150th match for the Blues against St Kilda in 1993, while Rod McGregor (1917) and Earl Spalding (1996) celebrated their 200th games against Richmond and West Coast respectively. In round five, 1997, Carlton looked to honour our midfield maestro Craig Bradley with a victory over Geelong in ‘Braddles’ 250th match, but lost to the Cats by 8 points in a cracker of a contest.
BEEN WAITING LONG?
Finally, we couldn’t wrap up this review without acknowledging a herculean feat by Carlton’s former co-tenants at Princes Park, the Hawthorn Football Club. In round 5, 1939, the Mayblooms finally defeated the Blues by three points at Glenferrie Oval – after 14 years of trying, and 25 straight losses.
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