There were few winners from Mother’s Day Monday night footy.
Like the son who doesn’t call or send flowers, this clash was a disappointment.
Sure, Carlton bagged the four points with a 32-point win but this was not a marquee occasion for the AFL.
The 26 thousand who attended saw a scrap for most of the evening, with Carlton’s eight straight second-quarter goals a rare bright spot.
St Kilda fans saw little sign of improvement, while Carlton’s faithful had hoped to rack up something close to the 145-point margin amassed by Hawthorn.
Carlton coach Mick Malthouse’s demeanour after the game suggested he too was unfulfilled.
Alan Richardson couldn’t bring himself to praise many of his young St Kilda players.
Even the captains had cause for complaint.
Marc Murphy should receive a note from the match review panel for a high bump on Nick Riewoldt, which concussed the St Kilda forward and forced him off for much of the third term.
Riewoldt still kicked four goals, which was both negative and positive for Richardson.
“It was almost (Riewoldt) or nothing in front of the footy tonight, which is a bit of a worry for us,” he said.
“We’ve got a pretty inexperienced group out there… our run, our ability to cover on the outside was found wanting.”
Malthouse saved his best praise for Lenny Hayes, who had 11 clearances, though he called Dale Thomas’ seven-disposal contribution “fantastic”.
“We probably had more winners over the ground, that’s generally how you win games of footy,” he said.
The veteran coach was not keen to discuss Murphy’s bump.
“I see it like you see it. It’s brief, it’s gone,” he said, before adding “Murph would be the last bloke ever to want to infringe”.
The fixture, for five years played by Carlton and St Kilda on the Monday night after Mother’s Day, must surely be under review after a lacklustre turn-out.
Drawing 42,860 in 2010, crowds have dwindled each year to a paltry 26,708 this year.
Form cannot be blamed; both sides had similar form-lines last year when more than 34,000 showed up.
Richardson said it wasn’t at the forefront of his mind.
“For our players and for our fans it’d be a better environment if there were more people but I’m just worried about the team,” he said.