The Blues showed plenty of promise for a half of football before the Swans blew them away in the second half. What will we see from Carlton in Round 1 when they face a Richmond side playing its first game of the 2026 season?<\/p>\n
At half-time last week you could make the case that a new-look Carlton was ready to surge up the ladder in 2026, but Sydney\u2019s second-half avalanche has quickly raised fresh doubts.<\/p>\n
As for Richmond, we haven\u2019t seen much of them in the pre-season after their Community Series match lasted just one half due to lightning.<\/p>\n
Last year produced one of the upsets of the season when the Tigers came from 41 points down to storm past the Blues. Can lightning strike twice for Richmond?<\/p>\n
High scoring was the trend in Round 0, but both Carlton and Richmond have recently been involved in plenty of lower scoring night games.<\/p>\n
Only three of Carlton\u2019s last 18 night matches have gone over the total points line, while just three of Richmond\u2019s last 11 night games have gone over.<\/p>\n
When these sides met in Round 1 last season the total also stayed under, and with wet and cold conditions forecast in Melbourne this could buck the Round 0 scoring trend.<\/p>\n
Lalor kicked at least one goal in each of his 11 appearances last season, including his memorable debut against the Blues where he helped spark Richmond\u2019s comeback win.<\/p>\n
He impressed in the pre-season and should spend most of his time forward while also rotating through the midfield.<\/p>\n
Late in the 2025 season Sam Banks cemented his role as Richmond\u2019s designated kicker and runner out of defence.<\/p>\n
He averaged 23.3 disposals across his final 15 games last year, clearing 20+ in 11 of those matches.<\/p>\n
Banks also collected 21 disposals in last year\u2019s Round 1 clash against Carlton despite being far less established at the time.<\/p>\n
Richmond\u2019s backline saw plenty of the ball in the shortened Community Series clash against Melbourne, with Banks already racking up 14 disposals before the game was abandoned due to lightning.<\/p>\n
Walsh shapes as the perfect multi kicker.<\/p>\n
He has moved into a centre-bounce midfield role this season and was one of the few bright spots in Carlton\u2019s Round 0 loss.<\/p>\n
Walsh collected 32 disposals against the Swans and has always been a ball magnet around the contest.<\/p>\n
He averaged 26.3 disposals last season while playing more outside roles, so the positional change should suit him perfectly.<\/p>\n