- Footy fans have raged at the AFL during Collingwood’s clash against Carlton
- The Magpies trailed their rivals at half-time, but Collingwood quickly responded
Footy fans have raged at the glaring kit clash between bitter rivals Carlton and Collingwood on Thursday night.
Some claimed that the game was ‘unwatchable’, one went as far as calling it ‘putrid’, while another was dismayed by the fact that the clash happens all too often between the sides.
Collingwood donned their classic ‘prison bar’ jumper as the home team, with Carlton electing to wear their classic navy blue home strip.
Carlton also opted to wear white shorts as part of their strip, but both sides donned dark navy socks, making it even harder for TV viewers to tell who was on the ground.
‘Jumper rating of ZERO out of 10 for #aflpiesblues. It is absolutely diabolical that this horrific and completely avoidable jumper clash happens every year! As the away team, Carlton MUST wear their white guernsey. When will this madness end!?’ One footy fan wrote on X on Thursday night.
‘Socks too. It’s putrid to watch. Players are handing over to opponents as a result,’ another wrote.
Footy fans have raged at the glaring kit clash between bitter rivals Carlton and Collingwood on Thursday night
The rival clubs squared off at the MCG for their hotly anticipated derby on Thursday night
‘This is unacceptable and unwatchable,’ one said.
Journalist Daniel Garb was also left bewildered at how the AFL had not intervened to make one of the sides wear a clash jersey.
‘How on earth isn’t a clash guernsey being worn?!’ Garb wrote on X.
He added: ‘Not great on TV. Reckon the players can’t tell each other apart half the time.’
Soccer reporter Vince Rugari added: ‘The guernsey clash here is insane. Absolutely ludicrous. Wouldn’t see this in any other competition on Earth.
‘No excuse for it. But they are both big Victorian clubs so it just happens, and nothing ever changes.’
Some fans lashed out at Carlton for not donning their white kit as the visiting side.
‘Carlton not wearing their white kit tonight is ridiculous. No point in having it if it isn’t worn against this Pies kit,’ one wrote on X.
Footy fans have lashed out at the ‘unacceptable and unwatchable’ kit clash on social media
Carlton took the lead at half-time following a cagey opening half-hour
‘Horrible visual product for the game. Why are Collingwood and Carlton exempt from wearing clash jumpers against each other? For the love of god can someone please outline the AFL’s clash jumper policy for me,’ one added.
Concerns have been raised over Michael Voss’s side’s form at the start of the 2025 season, with the Blues having suffered three defeats on the bounce.
Concerningly, they were beaten by a rebounding Richmond side in the 2025 season opener, Blown away by the Hollywood Hawks in round two and then out ran by the Western Bulldogs last week at the Marvel Stadium.
With bragging rights riding on tonight’s game, the Blues got off to a flying start against the Magpies, with goals from Oliver Hollands and Patrick Cripps giving the Blues an early lead in the first quarter.
It was a cagey match, though, with Collingwood hitting back almost immediately, with Harry Perryman and Jordan De Goey finding the middle sticks.
The second quarter was a tense affair, with Dan Houston now facing a nervous wait for a brutal bump on Carlton’s Lachie Fogarty, making contact with the Blues’ star’s head.
Brody Mihocek missed a big chance from 25m out but it was Carlton who took the lead into the changing rooms at half-time 29-25, thanks to a late second-quarter goal from George Hewitt.
More to follow…
