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1. Judd under the microscope
Carlton captain Chris Judd has a knack of finding himself in bizarre incidents. The dual Brownlow medallist has previously been reported for eye gouging and trying to press on pressure points, and could be looked at for another strange misdemeanor from the second quarter on Friday night. North Melbourne's Leigh Adams was lying on the ground face-down only for Judd to pull at his right arm so harshly that Adams had to leave the ground with what seemed to be a shoulder injury. Judd's actions earned a swift rebuke from Kangaroos skipper Andrew Swallow, who shoved him to the ground only to give away free kick. Judd was roundly booed by a vocal North Melbourne crowd for the rest of the night, and his actions are sure to be looked at during the week. If anything, the Blues' skipper seemed galvanised by the incident, with his game immediately lifting a cog. Judd finished with 36 possessions and three goals to be his team's best.
2. Casualties mount
The casualties of the game could be defining for both teams as they fight and scrap to get into the top eight. Judd could face the Match Review Panel, as could North Melbourne's Jack Ziebell for high contact with Aaron Joseph in the second quarter. Joseph came from the ground apparently concussed and didn't return for the night. Adams had returned to the ground 15 minutes after he was injured only to re-injure himself in the last quarter. Star forwards Andrew Walker (right calf) and Drew Petrie (left groin) could also face some time on the sidelines after they were substituted off through injury. Petrie's night may have come to a premature end, but he still managed to kick seven goals before donning the red vest. Andrew Swallow copped a wayward boot from a teammate just to finish off an evening of carnage for both teams.
3. Curse strikes Tuohy
The luck of the Irish didn't seem to counter the curse of Friday the 13th for Zac Tuohy. Both teams were set to play as selected until Tuohy appeared to injure his back in the warm-up and had to be treated by the Blues' doctor. He was quickly ruled unfit and Kane Lucas was given a very late call-up. Tuohy's pain was not only Lucas' gain, as Andrew Collins gladly handed the green substitute's vest to Lucas. Collins assumed he was still starting on the bench until a runner told him otherwise just seconds before the first bounce.
4. Locked and loaded
North Melbourne was clearly the better team at the contest and out of the middle, but it was its deadly accuracy that truly hurt Carlton. The Kangaroos kicked 24.5 including a remarkable 100 per cent strike rate from their 16 set shots. Carlton weren't woeful in front of goal, but midfielder Marc Murphy showed he may have been a bit rusty in his first game back from a shoulder injury, booting three behinds in the first half before finally securing a goal.
5. Hot seat empty
James Brayshaw's dual roles as a club president and radio commentator have caused some confusion over the past few years, but never more so than in the Triple M commentary box on Friday night. Brayshaw is usually heading the commentary team, but was supposed to be replaced by fellow caller Hamish McLachlan for the night. McLachlan was unaware he had been called in for a Friday night shift and didn't arrive in the commentary box until 15 minutes into the first quarter. Brayshaw had been blissfully unaware of his replacement's failure to show as he was enjoying a seat next to McLachlan's brother, AFL Chief Operating Officer Gillon McLachlan at North Melbourne's pre-match dinner.
The views in this article are those of the author and not necessarily of the clubs or the AFL.
