Carlton has dug deep to earn a stirring five-point win over an Eddie Betts-led Adelaide at the MCG.
The 12.9 (81) to 10.16 (76) victory looked unlikely at many stages, with the Crows roaring back into the contest after trailing by 20 points in the third quarter.
Carlton old boy Betts produced two final term goals to inspire an Adelaide revival.
With a kick separating the sides for the dying minutes, several massive moments all broke the Blues’ way.
A harsh deliberate out of bounds put the ball in Josh Jenkins’ hands who could not convert.
With Rory Sloane bearing down on goal, Andrejs Everitt produced a remarkable tackle to stop him kicking a winner.
And the siren sounded while Charlie Cameron conspired to drop a mark 40 metres from goal.
Truthfully, the match was described accurately by Wayne Carey as a “snorefest” at half-time, featuring more turnovers and clangers than goals.
Adelaide produced an unrecognisable performance compared to their last-out win against Collingwood, looking indecisive on the ball and inaccurate in front of goal.
But after the break, the contest caught fire, with both teams awake to the prospect of making ground on the top eight.
Kade Simpson impressed with 36-touches, while Patrick Dangerfield willed on the Crows despite a back complaint.
Carlton coach Mick Malthouse would have seen plenty to improve on, especially in the first half, but saluted the effort to grind out the victory.
“It was a tough hard win,” he said.
“Just pleased to get a victory really against a very good football side.”
Malthouse tried to avoid singling out efforts from his players, instead pointing to a team performance that he suggested may not have been possible last year.
“Defensively to just hold out and still have control of the game and of the occasion, that’s so vital.”
Simpson’s 36-possession haul was a “very brave” performance, with Bryce Gibbs and Dale Thomas also impressive.
Thomas kicked a last quarter goal that capped his best performance in the navy blue.
Beaten coach Brenton Sanderson could find positives in Betts’ four-goal showing but said their woeful kicking was decisive.
“We didn’t take our opportunities, we came in at halftime 2.7 and if that’s 7.2, we’re three or four goals up and we’re starting to roll,” he said.