The home team led by three points at the main change after a tight first half, but the class difference between the fourth-placed Blues and 16th-placed Power became evident as the match wore on.
Carlton dominated the second half, piling on 11 goals to Port Adelaide's one to run out comfortable winners 16.15 (111) to 7.7 (49).
It was the Walker and Justin Westhoff show in the opening quarter, with each bagging three goals.
The Power matched the Blues for intensity, and bettered them on the scoreboard to lead by five points at quarter time.
The visitors dominated the inside 50ms 14-5 for the second quarter, but tried to be too cute at times in the swirly conditions and failed to capitalise in front of goal, managing a return of only 2.4.
Concerns over the Power's ability to back up after a win over Richmond in trying conditions in Darwin were raised during the week and proved valid in the second half.
Garlett kicked the opening goal of the third quarter to give the Blues the lead for the first time in the game, and Port Adelaide was unable to get it back.
Carlton skipped out to a 16-point lead at three-quarter time, and three final-term goals to Garlett helped to give the Blues a handy percentage boost.
Power ruckman Dean Brogan received a battering for his troubles.
The veteran suffered separate knocks to the knee and ribs, and required six stitches for a finger laceration but is expected to play against West Coast in a fortnight.
Influential players
With preferred tagger Matt Thomas assigned the job of stopping two-time Brownlow Medallist Chris Judd, it was left up to Kane Cornes to try and negate the influence of star midfielder Marc Murphy. Murphy escaped the Cornes' tag right from the opening bounce, gathering nine possessions in the first quarter. The former No.1 draft pick finished the day with 32 disposals (14 contested), six clearances, two scoring assists and a goal to be one of the most damaging players on the ground. Walker continued his transition from out-of-favour utility to dangerous forward. It was the eighth time this season he has kicked multiple goals, and he now sits alongside Garlett -widely regarded as the best small forward in the competition - as Carlton's leading goalkicker with 25. Not bad for a player who was on the trade table six months ago.
Fresh off his best game of the season against Richmond last weekend, Port Adelaide onballer Travis Boak attracted the attention of Andrew Carrazzo on Sunday. Boak started slowly, but worked hard in the second half when some of his teammates did not. He reached his season-average of 22 possessions (14 contested), won a team-high seven clearances and had three scoring involvements.
What it means
Carlton has consolidated in fourth spot on the AFL ladder and will be hard to surpass, with winnable games against the Brisbane Lions, Sydney Swans, West Coast and Richmond at home in the next month. Young ruckman/forward Matthew Kreuzer has put his hand up to play against the Lions next week after getting through the third game in his comeback from a knee injury unscathed, meaning the Blues will only get better.
Port Adelaide, which has the bye next week, will have a fortnight to stew over its latest capitulation. Midfielders Dom Cassisi and David Rodan should return after the break, but the primary aim for coach Matthew Primus remains getting games into young players, including Ben Jacobs, Hamish Hartlett and Jasper Pittard.
The stats that matter
Carlton's complete domination in the second half was reflected in the overall possession count. The Blues touched the ball 106 more times than the Power, starting in the midfield where they won the clearances 42-31. The visitors generated 30 inside 50ms to 19 after half time would've put Port Adelaide away earlier if not for some errant goalkicking.
The luck of the Irish
...seriously deserted debutant Zac Tuohy, who was substituted into the game for Jamison, in the third quarter. The Irishman's eyes lit up when he saw space in front of him on the wing in the dying seconds of the third term. He took off running, but was caught out by the oval-shaped ball when he tried to take a bounce. The ball jumped up sharply and hit him in the head, costing him a shot at goal and his first possession in the AFL.
Key match up
Thomas' job on Judd was one of the few highlights for Port Adelaide. Thomas kept the Brownlow Medal favourite to 15 possessions to three-quarter time, while picking up 16 touches himself. Judd got away in the lop-sided final term, racking up seven disposals, but Thomas still held the game-breaker to his equal-lowest number of possessions (22) this season.
What the coaches said
Matthew Primus (Port Adelaide): "We just weren't able to keep crashing in, or to negate them to an extent, in terms of the way they wanted to play. Their onballers in the end...Marc Murphy, Mitch Robinson, Heath Scotland, Chris Yarran and those guys just really got on top of us."
Brett Ratten (Carlton): "Today was really pleasing how we just ran the game out. It was really encouraging that we stuck to our task and got the job done, that's the maturity of the group."
Dream Team highlight
Port Adelaide: Troy Chaplin ($324,400) continues to marshal the Power backline and reward Dream Teamers, scoring another 104 points as the Power's loose man in defence. Justin Westhoff ($330,800) also scored 92 points with three goals and 19 possessions.
Carlton: Andrew Walker was on fire for the Blues, booting six goals in a match-winning performance to notch up a season-high 113 DT points. Consistency has been the biggest flaw for Walker, but at $259,000 the 25-year-old must still be a tempting option for DT coaches.
The next four
Port Adelaide: Bye, West Coast (Patersons Stadium), North Melbourne (AAMI Stadium), Brisbane Lions (Gabba)
Quarter By Quarter
First quarter
Both teams struggled early in the slippery conditions at AAMI Stadium, with players from both sides continually losing their footing and fumbling the footy in the initial stages. Port Adelaide was the first to settle with goals to Justin Westhoff and Daniel Motlop giving the Power an early break. Carlton eventually found their rhythm as Scotland (seven disposals), Murphy (nine disposals, four clearances) and Simpson (five disposals, three tackles) worked their way into the game. Westhoff produced a magical mark and goal, his third for the quarter, to push the margin out to eleven points and lift the home crowd to their feet. A three-goal quarter to Andrew Walker kept the Blues in touch, with the visitors only trailing by five points at the first change.
Second quarter
Both teams were untidy with their disposal during a scrappy second quarter, with the Power and Blues missing easy targets through the midfield and burning possession. The Blues stepped up their work rate in the second term, dominating the inside-50 count 28-16 by half-time. But Carlton was wasteful up forward and could not turn possession into goals, booting 2.4 for the term. Andrew Walker was the notable exception, nailing a fantastic goal from outside 50, his fourth for the match, to add another jaw-dropping moment to his Sunday night highlight reel. Port did enough to deny the Carlton onslaught and hung on to a three-point lead into the major break.
Third quarter
Carlton took the lead for the first time of the match in the third term, with the visitors' small forwards doing the damage. After early goals to Garlett and Betts it looked as though the Blues were poised to run away with the result. Carlton's tempo lifted into another gear, with Walker's fifth goal for the game putting the visitors eight points ahead late in the term. Port's attacks were repelled too easily by the Carlton defence and the Power could only muster one goal for the quarter through a fast-break to Travis Boak. Port were simply overawed in general play, registering 46 less possessions than the visitors for the quarter as the Blues opened up a 16-point advantage by three-quarter time.
Fourth quarter
The heavens opened in the final term, and the goals rained down for Carlton as the Blues put the final few nails in Port Adelaide's coffin. The sting went out of the contest when Power youngster Jasper Pittard handed Garlett his second goal for the match, after his kick-out from the goals quare slewed off the side of his boot. Mitch Robinson, a man seemingly born to play in the treacherous rain, then slotted his set shot moments later to give Carlton a comfortable margin. From there, the visitors scored at will, piling on seven goals for the term and holding Port scoreless to win by 62 points. The result solidifies the Blues' spot inside the top four of the AFL ladder with their next three matches all against interstate clubs at Etihad Stadium.
Port Adelaide 4.2 6.4 7.7 7.7 (49)
Carlton 3.3 5.7 9.11 16.15 (111)
GOALS - Port Adelaide: Westhoff 3, Motlop, Broadbent, Schulz, Boak
Carlton: Walker 6, Garlett 4, Betts 2, Ellard, Robinson, Murphy, Yarran
BEST - Port Adelaide: Westhoff, Thomas, Broadbent, Chaplin, Boak
Carlton: Walker, Robinson, Murphy, Thornton, Scotland, Simpson
INJURIES - Port Adelaide: Brogan (finger, knee)
Carlton: Jamison (ankle)
SUBSTITUTES - Port Adelaide: Cameron O'Shea replaced by Andrew Moore at three-quarter time
Carlton: Michael Jamison (ankle) replaced by Zac Tuohy in the third quarter
Reports: Nil
Umpires: Kennedy, Stevic, Ryan
Official crowd: 23,192 at AAMI Stadium
The views in this article are those of the author and not necessarily of the clubs or the AFL
