Carlton star Chris Judd's AFL season is over and the Blues' finals hopes are all but extinguished after a 28-point loss to the Western Bulldogs at Etihad Stadium on Saturday.
Judd injured his knee in the third quarter of the 16.21 (117) to 13.11 (89) loss.
Blues coach Mick Malthouse has confirmed Judd's season is over - the midfielder having damaged a medial ligament in his knee.
But Malthouse refused to use injuries - the Blues had only one fit player on the bench going into the final quarter - as an excuse for his side's defeat.
"The Bulldogs were far too hungry, far too good and made a mockery of our defensive mindset," Malthouse said.
Given a massive opportunity to bridge the gap to the top eight after eighth-placed Port Adelaide's loss to Geelong earlier, the Blues couldn't capitalise.
They were jumped early by an excellent Bulldogs outfit, then ran out of fit bodies as they tried to mount a second half rearguard action.
As well as Judd, the Blues lost forward Jeff Garlett (glute) and Matthew Watson (foot) by three-quarter-time to limit their interchange rotations.
Bulldogs forward Jarrad Grant was best afield, booting four goals and gathering 24 possessions.
Now Carlton can only make the finals if they win their remaining three matches, and Port Adelaide and the other teams in contention fall in a massive hole.
The Blues' slow start as the Bulldogs played clean, crisp football put them on the backfoot.
Only the Dogs' wasteful first quarter kicking for goal kept Carlton from being blown away, trailing by five points at quarter-time.
The Bulldogs found their range and radar in the second term, and consecutive goals to Luke Dahlhaus, Grant, Tory Dickson and Liam Jones midway through the quarter pushed their lead out to 28 points.
But the Blues fought back to trail by 15 points at halftime.
With Judd and Brock McLean prominent, Carlton then launched at the Bulldogs and levelled late in the third quarter, before the Dogs grabbed a late goal to take a six-point lead into the final term.
Then the Blues eventually ran out of steam - the match sealed with Adam Cooney slotting a curling goal on the run to make the lead unassailable.
Bulldogs coach Brendan McCartney admitted the Blues losing players may have helped his side's cause, but was thrilled with his players getting reward for their effort and improvement throughout a season in which wins have been thin on the ground.
"It was a good last quarter for a lot of players who've probably taken some beatings and beltings in the last 18 months," he said.
"I'm so happy for our supporters to see how much they're enjoying the improvement, and enjoying these players put on a good product and win games for them."
