AFL, Carlton supporting 'shattered' Blue Hollands | Illawarra Mercury - Australia News Beep

Michael Voss says they are supporting and working with Elijah Hollands after his off night. Photo: Joel Carrett/AAP PHOTOS

The AFL has joined Carlton in supporting a “shattered” Elijah Hollands after the Blues utility expressed regret for his erratic, one-disposal performance in a close loss to Collingwood.

Hollands initially ended Thursday night’s 13.10 (88) to 12.11 (83) defeat at the MCG without registering a statistic, despite playing 75 per cent of the match across the first three quarters.

The 23-year-old was eventually awarded a possession by Champion Data in retrospect, an ineffective kick in the third term.

Blues players leave the field after their five-point defeat to Collingwood. (Joel Carrett/AAP PHOTOS)

After failing to impact the match, Hollands was benched for most of the last quarter as Collingwood stormed home from 18 points down at the final break.

The AFL has been in contact with Carlton on Friday about how to best support Hollands.

“We are having ongoing discussions with Carlton and also ensuring Elijah has the relevant support,” AFL spokesperson Jay Allen told AAP on Friday.

The AFL Players Association was concerned by how the situation evolved and has been in contact with the AFL and Hollands’ manager to better understand what happened.

Carlton coach Michael Voss described Hollands as being “pretty shattered”.

Prior to last night's tough performance, Elijah Hollands had been enjoying a good start to the year. (James Ross/AAP PHOTOS) Prior to last night’s tough performance, Elijah Hollands had been enjoying a good start to the year. (James Ross/AAP PHOTOS)

“I spoke to him after the game and he was really disappointed with how he started,” Voss said on Thursday night.

“He was really upset and feels like he’s let me down.

“He was pretty emotional after the game.

“He didn’t play a great game and he struggled to get his way into it.”

Voss said he was in “constant conversations” with Hollands during the match.

Several videos circulated online after the match appearing to show Hollands confused and exhibiting erratic behaviour.

“He was disappointed with how he was playing, so when it comes to the last quarter, you obviously have to work out what mix you’ve got with five minutes to go and what you want on the field,” Voss said.

“He wasn’t having a great night.

“We obviously thought the best mix was to not have him out there.”

“He feels really disappointed with his performance.

“With the importance of the night, he feels like he’s let people down.

“But we just have to keep supporting people through those situations.”

Last year, Hollands twice took personal leave from Carlton, later revealing he had been battling mental ill-health and issues with alcohol.

The former Gold Coast player was delisted by the Blues at the end of last season, despite having a year to run on his contract.

But Hollands was invited to Carlton training over summer, impressing enough to win his spot back on the list.

He has played all six games this season, averaging 18.4 possessions before the concerning output against the Magpies.

Carlton slumped to 1-5, losing for a fourth time this year after having a sizeable lead during the second half.

“Carlton have been in front four times this year … we were questioning whether they could do it for four quarters,” Collingwood coach Craig McRae said.

“That’s the evidence they’ve put in front of everyone, so we wanted to play it out.

“Still, you’ve got to take your chances and you’ve got to make the most of it.”

Australian Associated Press