Carlton prevailed over the Western Bulldogs by 16 points in an AFLW practice match at Mars Stadium on Saturday night.
More than 2000 people watched an entertaining contest between two competitive sides.
The teams were level at the first break and the Bulldogs trailed by just three points at one stage during the last quarter, but the Blues then managed to kick the only two goals of the final term to record a 8.8 (56) to 6.4 (40) win.
Despite the loss, head coach Paul Groves remained upbeat about his side’s performance against Carlton.
"We were really happy with the endeavour of the girls and trying to go about it the way we're trying to play,” he said.
"They've got some belief out of tonight. They've got some confidence."
Bulldogs fans got their first look at number one pick Isabel Huntington who returned in her first competitive match of football from an ACL injury sustained in 2016.
"It was Izzy's first game of competitive football for about 18 months, there were no expectations on her at all," said Groves.
"We saw some really exciting things by her tonight.
"She's so eager to learn and is going to be really exciting for a long time."
The Ballarat community embraced the first AFLW game played at Mars Stadium.
"It's such an important relationship with Ballarat.
"That's why we wanted to come up and play our practice match here. They really embrace the girls."
Saturday's match was preparation for the Club’s opening round fixture against Fremantle at Victoria University Whitten Oval on Sunday, February 4.
WESTERN BULLDOGS 1.0 4.0 6.2 6.4 (40)
CARLTON 1.0 4.2 6.6 8.8 (56)
BEST: Aasta O’Connor, Bonnie Toogood, Daria Bannister, Tiarna Ernst
