It was the AFL's first trial of Sunday night football and it remains to be seen whether the timeslot works. A crowd of 24,460 turned up at Etihad Stadium for the Blues-Power clash. Carlton president Stephen Kernahan certainly questioned the AFL's decision before the match, saying he was sceptical about how fans would receive the time change: "It'll be interesting to see how many we get in the ground tonight … I'm a bit worried about how many we'll get in here tonight, but we'll see if the experiment works," he said. There are three matches in a Sunday night timeslot to come later in the season - Carlton v Essendon (April 6), North Melbourne v Richmond (June 8) and Collingwood v Carlton (June 29).

 

Justin Westhoff was everywhere in the first half - kicking four goals, hauling in seven marks (seven contested) to go along with 15 disposals. The Blues moved Lachie Henderson to the backline to curtail Westhoff's influence and he was held statless in the third quarter. But even if Westhoff is held down, the Power know Robbie Gray (four goals) can bob up when needed, and youngsters Ollie Wines and Jared Polec can also hit the scoreboard with regularity. Westhoff is pivotal to the Power's forward structure and his five goals against the Blues were testament to that.

 

Dale Thomas' much talked about defection from Collingwood to Carlton was complete on Sunday night, as the midfielder marked his first official game as a Blue. His impact was immediate – he kicked the first goal of the game, prompting his teammates to come from everywhere to congratulate him. From then on, Thomas drifted in an out of the game playing in a variety of positions, even spending time at full forward.  He finished with 15 touches and a goal in his first hit-out as a Blue. Following a series of surgeries on his ankle, the jury is still out as to whether he can return to the lofty standards he set at the Magpies.

 

There is no secret Adelaide is actively pursuing Bryce Gibbs. Carlton desperately wants to keep him. Something has to give. Gibbs' performance on Sunday night, in which he collected 23 disposals, certainly justified the interest surrounding him. The long-haired utility was influential in setting up the play for his side. But most importantly he made his disposals count, and that's the beauty of a player of his type. When addressing the crowd at his president's function before the game, Kernahan made a strong statement: "You've heard that Adelaide are trying to poach him. They might have got to Eddie Betts, but they'll need a lot of money to get Bryce Gibbs. He's a required player here and we're in the best position to keep him," he said.

 

Carlton defender Andrew Walker plays his football at a frenetic pace, but his intensity could come back to hurt him. Walker is likely to come under the scrutiny of the Match Review Panel for an incident involving Justin Westhoff. The Blues backman made a desperate attempt to get back to spoil Westhoff's marking attempt, but collected him high with a clumsy effort. Westhoff was left dazed and went through the protocols of a concussion test, before being cleared to return to the field where he proceeded to dominate the game. Walker was then reported for rough conduct in the last quarter for slamming Angus Monfries into the fence.

 

Twitter: @AFL_BenGuthrie