Sydney Morning Herald - Latest News
· collected 2026-09-04 · by Danny Russell, Sam McClure
The article rates the performance of each Carlton player from the elimination final against Geelong at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, where more than 96,000 fans watched the Cats win. Key ratings include Shaun Mannagh with an 8/10 and Max Holmes with a 3/10. The article highlights Jeremy Cameron's struggles to make an impact on the game, noting he "didn't get near the footy" in the first half and was "clearly not right". The ratings suggest that several Carlton players, including Jay Polkinghorne and Michael Edwards, had disappointing nights.
Written by the local model on 2026-09-04,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
There are three articles provided
Article 1
The article discusses the match between Geelong and Carlton. The headline is "Carlton's season ends in heartbreak as they fall to Geelong". The article states that Geelong won the game by a margin of 21 points, with their forward line performing well. It also mentions that Carlton's young players showed promise but struggled against Geelong's experienced team.
Article 2
The second article appears to be a list of teams' squads for the upcoming match. The teams mentioned are Fremantle, Hawthorn, Geelong, and others. The article lists each team's starting 22 players, including their backups and emergencies (EMG). It also includes any changes or updates from previous weeks.
Article 3
The third article is a standard AFL coverage update, informing readers to keep up-to-date with the latest news and analysis from around the league.
Written for “AFL Finals Update 2026” on 2026-09-05,
grounded in this article and the 7 other(s) covering the same event.
The fairytale had to end at some stage for the Blues, and it happened at the MCG in front of more than 96,000 fans as the finals-hardened Cats flexed their muscles right when they needed to most.
asserted
they → have → muscles
Danny Russell (Geelong) and Sam McClure (Carlton) rate every Carlton player’s performance from the blockbuster elimination final.
asserted
Russell → rate → final
The latest to suffer the curse of the big forward during this finals series, he found it hard to break free and was monstered by Jacob Weitering in several marking contests but did manage a goal.
asserted
it → suffer → goal
4/10
(3) Bailey Smith: Struggled to shake off a Cooper Lord tag early and would have been annoyed that his opponent kicked two goals.
asserted
opponent → struggle → goals
But he is impossible to keep down and got busy in the third.
asserted
he → keep → third
He was able to become a spectator as the game wore on and the Cats shifted the match into their forward 50.
asserted
Cats → become → forward
He didn’t get near the footy.
asserted
He → get → footy
He started at half-back before moving to the wing, but struggled to have any meaningful impact.
asserted
He → start → impact
He’s clearly not right.
asserted
He → ’ → ?
3/10
(7) Shaun Mannagh: He has yanked himself out of the “opportunist/goal sneak” pigeonhole to become a damaging midfielder.
asserted
He → yank → pigeonhole
Close to the Cats’ best as he rotated through the square and found stacks of the ball.
asserted
he → rotate → ball
8/10
(9) Max Holmes: Is it poor taste to say the operation was a success but the patient died?
asserted
patient → say → ?
He ran the game out and, after a long lay-off, will be better for the run, but he could not find the footy and had little impact.
uncertain
he → run → impact
His biggest moment was being crunched by Blake Acres in a third-quarter marking contest.
asserted
moment → crunch → contest
It was a relief to see him get up.
asserted
him → see → ?
Other than that, he was probably shaded by Marc Pittonet in the ruck.
asserted
he → shade → ruck
He probably wished they had another week off when the Blues came out firing in the first quarter, but was able to put the bus in cruise control thereafter.
asserted
Blues → wish → control
None of the big Blues got off the chain.
asserted
None → get → chain
6/10
(17) Lawson Humphries: Created one of the pivotal moments of the match when he spoiled a Carlton kick-in at full speed at the start of the third term.
asserted
he → create → term
It set up a Mannagh goal, and sparked the Geelong avalanche.
asserted
It → set → avalanche
5/10
(21) Oliver Wiltshire: He kicked three behinds.
asserted
He → kick → behinds
While others shaded him on the stats sheet – he had 22 disposals – he was vital to the Cats’ turnaround.
asserted
he → shade → turnaround
He took two marks deep in the forward pocket in the first and third terms, but could not convert either.
uncertain
He → take → terms
He looked bamboozled, or even slow, when Sam Walsh and Jagga Smith were creating havoc in the opening term.
asserted
Walsh → look → term
But the never-say-die fan favourite combined with Mannagh to help swing the game back on Geelong’s terms.
asserted
favourite → say → terms
More reliable than a box of matches, he was one of the chief fire starters for Geelong in the second term, streaming through half-forward.
asserted
he → stream → forward
He kicked two.
asserted
He → kick → two
It’s funny how the game works.
asserted
game → ’ → ?
He was odds-on favourite to be worst on ground in the first half, a poor showing that included a butchered shot on goal.
asserted
that → include → goal
But he lifted to kick two after the long break.
asserted
he → lift → break
He will be popping up in Jagga Smith’s nightmares for the next six months.
asserted
He → pop → months
He was shaded by Sam Walsh in the first term before switching to the dangerous Smith and rendering him helpless.
asserted
He → shade → him
He had a touch of the Clark Kents early, fumbling some marking contests, but found the Superman cape and became unstoppable.
asserted
He → have → cape
And if that wasn’t enough, he booted five.
asserted
he → boot → five
He needs to sit down and watch Dangerfield’s game to understand the difference between promising and delivering.
asserted
He → need → promising
Another of the Cats’ unsung heroes, he provides reliable cover deep in defence that allows Tom Stewart to strut his stuff.
asserted
Stewart → provide → stuff
He often picked up Harry McKay as he pushed up the ground.
asserted
he → pick → ground
With another solid night in defence, he had 16 disposals and took four marks.
asserted
he → have → marks
He was instrumental in keeping the small Carlton forwards quiet.
asserted
He → keep → forwards
If you measure his performance on Cripps’ output (24 disposals)
asserted
you → measure → output
…and 31 more, not listed.
