Demons v Blues player ratings: From a future Brownlow medallist, to the Dees who ran out of fuel

It’s barely believable that Carlton were 1-8 and 16th on the ladder after round nine – staring down the barrel of another wasted season.

In the weeks and months since, the transformation under Josh Fraser has the Blues looking every bit the powerhouse they were for generations, and after their win over the Demons in front of more than 91,000 fans on Saturday night, who knows just how many more chapters their fairytale has to play out.

Our experts, Jon Pierik (Demons) and Danny Russell (Blues) rate every player’s performance from the second wildcard final.

(4) Harvey Langford: Has had a super year, but this wasn’t one of his best. He emptied the tank on a wing when running alongside Ollie Hollands. He appeared gassed, at times, in the first half and should have made a better contest when Matt Cottrell marked on the lead. He won’t want to watch a replay of that. 5/10

(5) Xavier Lindsay: The mid-sized defender and former Morrish medallist had a solid night, spending time on Cottrell. Found plenty of the ball, and is another youngster the Demons are building around. 5.5/10

(6) Caleb Windsor: Had a quiet first half with only five disposals and 67 metres gained, and struggled to have an impact at stoppages. 5/10

(7) Jack Viney: It was a questionable decision for the Demons to bring in their vice captain for his first senior appearance of the season. He was given a rousing ovation when he took to the field for the first time with 11 minutes left in the first term. He had five disposals to half-time but already appeared out of petrol tickets. 2/10

(9) Jack Steele: The former St Kilda captain had a team-high nine disposals in the first term, and continued to work diligently through the midfield, finishing with 23 disposals. While it was a bruising departure from the Saints, Steele had the last laugh. 6.5/10

(10) Daniel Turner : The disciplined full-back had the job on Harry McKay and struggled with the size of the Blues’ forward, McKay booting two goals and being an active threat. He really missed injured fellow defensive pillar Jake Lever, and was switched to Brodie Kemp late in the game. 6.5/10

(11) Max Gawn: The reigning All-Australian captain had eight first-term touches and pushed forward whenever he could. He was rewarded when he converted after a slick Melksham pass, but was quiet in the second term when Marc Pittonet responded. Had 18 touches and 31 hitouts, but appeared regularly unhappy with several umpiring calls. 7/10

(12) Koltyn Tholstrup: The emerging defender was sent to Francis Evans, and made sure the Blues’ cult figure was unable to reproduce his five-goal return of last week. It was a surprise Steven King did not move him to Jagga Smith late when the young Blue took control. 6.5/10

(14) Changkuoth Jiath: Demons fans are never too sure if the former Hawk will pick off more than he can chew. The rebounding half-back was sent to Mitch McGovern and eclipsed the veteran Blue, but left the field with a leg issue in the first term. He soon returned, and continued to test the Blues – and the hearts of the red and blue – with his run.