Horror injuries extend Carlton's miserable 2021

Carlton's poor start to 2021 has gone from bad to worse with midfielder David Cunningham suffering a serious injury in the loss to Melbourne.

Cunningham, who had played just three matches so far this season, went down early in the first quarter of Melbourne's 13. 16. (94) to 10. 8. (68) win at the MCG.

The incident occurred on the wing in the first quarter as Cunningham's left leg buckled after he landed in a marking contest.

The 24-year-old immediately crashed to the turf, yelling in agony, before he was helped off the ground by Carlton's trainers. He was substituted out of the game for small forward Michael Gibbons.

Following Carlton's loss, coach David Teague admitted that the club was left fearing the worst for Cunningham, with the injury likely to rule him out for the rest of the year.

Cunningham's injury wasn't the only scare for the Blues, with Coleman Medal leader Harry McKay suffering a shoulder injury, although he was able to run out the game.

McKay had his right shoulder looked at in the opening quarter, but finished the game with three goals, adding to his lead at the top of the AFL's goal-kicking list.

Melbourne's win made it a 9-0 start for the AFL's ladder leaders, with the unbeaten start through nine weeks the club's best start since the 1956 season, a year in which it won the premiership.

Clayton Oliver was sensational in the win, finishing with 28 disposals, 10 tackles and a goal, while Christian Salem continued his prolific play off halfback with 29 touches.

Told to find another club in the off-season, Tom McDonald continued his incredible renaissance season, finishing with three goals, while Bayley Fritsch also added three of his own.

The Blues' efforts were led by Sam Walsh, who collected another 30 disposals, while co-captains Sam Docherty (27 disposals) and Patrick Cripps (27 disposals) were also impressive.

Melbourne will be hot favourites to extend their unbeaten streak to 10 wins next week, but will have to do it on the road against the Adelaide Crows.

Carlton will aim to resuscitate it's finals hopes when it faces a struggling Hawthorn team at the MCG.

For a daily dose of the best of the breaking news and exclusive content from Wide World of Sports, subscribe to our newsletter by clicking here!