After a strong opening half, the GIANTS – with only six AFL listed players - were overrun by Carlton in round 18 of the VFL.

Jarrod Brander (18 disposals, one goal), Will Shaw (10 disposals, two goals) and Cameron Fleeton (18 disposals, six marks) impressed, but it wasn't enough as the GIANTS fell to an 9.4 (58) to 13.17 (95) defeat at IKON Park on Saturday night. 

12:29

“It was a solid three-quarter performance,” said GIANTS VFL coach Damian Truslove.

“We stuck to the game plan really well for that period, but our third quarter was poor and Carlton were able to capitalise on that. 

“Overall, it was a really good effort considering we had four debutants and a very inexperienced team.” 

Truslove shared his assessments of the AFL and VFL listed players who played in the match.

AFL Listed Players: 

21 Leek Aleer

11 disposals, 3 marks

Another solid performance down back. He won or halved the majority of his contests and used the ball well by foot. 

29 Cameron Fleeton

18 disposals, 6 marks

Another reliable performance down back. He lost a couple of contests early but fought back to have a really strong game and he’s developing into a really valuable leader for us at VFL level. 

31 Jarrod Brander

18 disposals, 1 goal

Played an important role on the wing this week and supported our backline really well. He gave us plenty of run and drive with our ball movement. 

35 Will Shaw

2 goals, 10 disposals 

Was really dangerous in the first quarter playing forward. His fall of ball positioning was good and he provided us the spark we needed in the forward half of the ground. 

43 Cooper Hamilton

10 disposals, 8 tackles

Cooper played a new role defensive role in the midfield this week. He’s still learning his craft, but he fought hard for the entire contest and his tackling pressure was excellent. 

45 Wade Derksen

10 disposals, 3 marks

Started the game up forward and attacked the contest with aggression. Unfortunately, we lost our ruck early into the contest so he had play out the game as our main ruck. We can’t fault his effort, it was outstanding. 

VFL Listed and Academy Players:  

48 Harry Grintell

11 disposals, 1 goal

Played back and forward again this week. He used the ball really well by foot and gave us some great rebound off half-back. 

49 Sam Frost  

16 disposals, 6 marks

Another really strong performance from Sam. He plays a really important role for us down back. He was hard and tough around the contest and is developing into a really good leader. 

50 Billy Clark  

17 disposals, 8 marks

Played the majority of the game on the wing and provided a good option coming out of our back half. 

51 Ryan Hebron

13 disposals, 2 goals

He started forward and went back in the second half. He led the way with his courage and attack at the ball. 

52 Brodie Romensky

9 disposals, 2 goals

Was lively up forward. His defensive pressure was really good which saw him rewarded with two goals.

Brodie Romensky of the GIANTS celebrates a goal during the round 18 VFL match against Carlton at Ikon Park.

55 Kyle Veerhuis

Started in the ruck but unfortunately injured his ankle early into the contest.  

56 Noah Casalini

12 disposals, 4 tackles

His leading patterns as a forward were really good. He attacked the ball and opposition with aggression. 

57 Sebastian Quirk

9 disposals, 1 goal

Played a really important defensive roll for us this week. His gut run was outstanding and he used the ball well by hand and foot.

58 Xavier Barry-Murphy

7 disposals, 2 marks

Played forward and back. Always plays a team first role and his ball use was good by foot. 

59 Mackinley Miller

13 disposals, 8 marks

Out of the GIANTS Academy, this was his first game at VFL level. He won or halved several critical contests playing down back. 

60 Leyton Chisholm

11 disposals, 4 tackles

Worked hard around the stoppages and his tackling intent was really good.  

62 Jaelen Pavlidis

15 disposals, 3 tackles

Another debutant for the club this week. He played on ball and is a talented prospect moving forward. 

64 Ethan Grace

10 disposals, 2 marks

Played across half-back and used it really well by foot. Gave us great drive out of the back half.  

66 Luke Fellows

7 disposals, 5 marks

Played on the wing this week. His running patterns to support the defence were really good and his decision making was impressive throughout the contest. 

67 Luke Lawrence

10 disposals, 4 marks

Another GIANTS Academy product playing his first game for the club at VFL level. He played in the midfield and was hard and tough around the contest. He fought the game out well after getting a knock early. 

68 Angus Edwards

6 disposals, 2 tackles

Another GIANTS Academy product playing his first game foe the club this week. He played down back in a lock down role and was very disciplined.

70 Lachlan Wright

3 disposals, 1 tackle

He played across half forward, presented well at the ball really well and got involved more as the game went on.