JACK SILVAGNI & JESSE MOTLOP

CARLTON v PORT ADELAIDE Marvel Stadium, July 15

u The Blues are back, baby.

There were promising signs in the round 14 win against Gold Coast and, after the bye, they were confirmed in another dominant performance over Hawthorn in round 16.

Michael Voss’ men then suffocated Fremantle out west in round 17 and last week they came up against Port Adelaide hot off a 13-game winning streak.

The Blues kicked 18.14 (122) against a side that hadn’t conceded more than 14 goals since round three.

For the first time in its history, Carlton has won four consecutive games by 50 or more points and is again among the form teams of the competition.

Last Saturday evening, Jack Silvagni was the man who kickstarted the Blues’ triumph.

Playing inside forward 50, the 25-year-old had seven disposals, took three marks and kicked 2.1 in the first half as Carlton opened up a five-goal lead at half-time.

By the final siren, his stats sheet had everything: four goals, 19 disposals, 11 score involvements, five marks, four tackles, 10 hit-outs and three clearances. It was far and away Silvagni’s best game of the season.

Another season-best performance saw Jesse Motlop kick four goals.

The 19-year-old hadn’t kicked more than two goals in 2023, but his three majors in the second term were imperative as Carlton broke the game open.

It was some performance given Motlop came in as a late replacement for the injured Matthew Owies.

AFL TRIVIA QUESTION #13

When was the last official AFL State of Origin game?