A hamstring injury to superstar Patrick Cripps will be of great concern to Carlton, who lose their first game of 2022 to an impressive Gold Coast Suns.
Earlier, Essendon got off the mark in 2022 with a narrow and tense win over Adelaide, while a red-hot St Kilda side wiped Hawthorn off the MCG.
Check out the scores, stats and results below.
Gold Coast vs Carlton
Team stats
Player stats
Ruthless Saints run all over Hawks
Max King's heroics weren't required on this occasion as free-scoring St Kilda continued their AFL resurgence with a third-straight victory, thrashing Hawthorn by 69 points.
Emerging superstar King had grabbed the two previous games by the throat when the Saints needed a hero to step up in frantic finishes against Fremantle and Richmond.
But the Hawks clash was a comparative Sunday stroll as St Kilda posted their highest score under Brett Ratten in the 22.10 (142) to 10.13 (73) win at the MCG.
The Paddy Ryder-Rowan Marshall combination delivered again as the pair outpointed inexperienced Hawk Ned Reeves in the ruck and had an impact in attack.
Ryder kicked two goals from 10 disposals but will attract scrutiny from the match review officer over a late bump on Will Day, who was substituted out of the match with a concussion.
Brad Hill kicked a career-best four goals at half-forward in a tally matched by teammates Tim Membrey and Jade Gresham, who both kicked goals in each quarter.
There were no major fireworks from King, though he also finished with four majors, including three in the final term, as one of eight goal-kickers in the comfortable win.
Hawthorn ball magnet Tom Mitchell was good at the stoppages, as were Saints pair Jack Steele and Brad Crouch, while Mitch Lewis kicked 3.5 for the Hawks and took a huge mark on Ben Paton's back in the dying stages.
Luke Breust also kicked three goals for the Hawks.
Hawthorn's pre-match activation signage around the ground proclaimed "this is our house" and Dylan Moore looked right at home in the opening stages.
He put two goals on the board from free kicks in the first two minutes after he was pushed in the back by Paton and then caught the Saints defender holding the ball.
King helped St Kilda respond, nailing a long set shot and setting up an easy goal for Hill as the Saints kicked six of the next seven majors before quarter-time.
Tempers flared when Ryder collided with Day but St Kilda were unfazed, opening up a commanding 37-point lead by the main break.
Their superior efficiency told the tale, with 15 scores coming from 22 forward entries, while Hawthorn had 13 from 26.
Poor field and goal-kicking meant the Saints squandered the chance to finish the contest by three-quarter time but they nevertheless cruised home in the final term.
The result gave St Kilda a 3-1 record ahead of a home game against Gold Coast in round five, while Hawthorn (2-2) face a tough test against traditional rivals Geelong on Easter Monday.
Bombers off the mark in a cracker against Crows
Essendon have hung on against a surging Adelaide to claim a four-point victory and finally get their AFL season off the mark.
The Bombers were without coach Ben Rutten, who was isolating as a COVID-19 close contact, while a hamstring injury sidelined gun forward Jake Stringer, amid their worst start to a campaign since 1967.
However, with stand-in coach Blake Caracella taking the reins, the Bombers withstood a late Crows surge to prevail 15.13 (103) to 15.9 (99).
Darcy Parish racked up 38 touches and eight clearances and was well supported by Nic Martin, Andrew McGrath and Jye Caldwell while Peter Wright — with three goals and six marks — was influential.
On his return from a six-game ban for making a racist comment about a SANFL opposition player last year, Taylor Walker was booed whenever he touched the ball, but booted four goals and was among Adelaide's best.
Walker also had a shot to potentially win the match from long range with just over a minute on the clock, but missed.
Adelaide star Rory Laird was typically busy with 38 disposals, while Showdown hero Jordan Dawson's classy ball use proved influential and Josh Rachele — with three goals — was lively.
From the opening minute, Essendon were strong around the clearances but Adelaide proved deadly on the counter, troubling the Bombers with their quick, scything ball movement.
The Bombers led by seven at the first break and big goals to Wright and Caldwell gave them a 16-point lead midway through the second quarter
But the Crows reeled in the Bombers and Essendon led by eight at half-time, as Will Snelling (calf) was substituted off for Devon Smith.
Snelling was in his return game from a calf injury.
The third quarter proved a see-sawing affair, but Matt Guelfi's goal on the run gave Essendon a five-point edge leading into the final term.
In a see-sawing final term, Smith proved arguably Essendon's most influential player.
The substitute kicked the goal that extended Essendon's lead to seven, then after a run of Adelaide behinds, he teed up Archie Perkins to kick the Bombers out to a 10-point advantage.
Lachlan Gollant drew the Crows within a goal while the Bombers would have breathed a sigh of relief when Walker skied his late shot.
The Crows had one final surge in the dying seconds but Mason Redman took an important intercept mark to save the game.
AAP
