Carlton smashed North Melbourne by 53 points in their first-round AFL pre-season match at the Telstra Dome on Friday night.

Brendan Fevola kicked six goals, including a supergoal, and Bryce Gibbs had 27 disposals in the 1.17.12 (123) to 0.11.4 (70) walkover.

North defender Daniel Pratt was helped from the field in the third term after Fevola's knee cannoned into his back in a marking contest.

Carlton newcomer Chris Yarran, taken with the No.6 pick in last November's national draft, also limped from the field near the end of the first quarter when he rolled an ankle.

The Blues are widely-expected to break into the top eight this year and they were awesome as they steamrolled the Kangaroos.

Their ball movement out of the centre was first-rate and Fevola looks set for another big season.

The Blues full-forward fell one short of his first goalkicking century last season and if this is a sign of what is to come, he will surely crack the ton this time.

Fevola kicked the first goal of the game and the Blues were never headed, leading by 30 points at halftime and 70 early in the last term.

Perhaps the most worrying part of such a poor effort for North was the two teams were close to their best line-ups.

Carlton were missing Andrew Walker and Heath Scotland, while the 'Roos left out former captain Adam Simpson from their final side.

Just as this match will boost Carlton's confidence, it raises serious questions about North's prospects for the regular season.

North had a poor end to last season, with Port Adelaide thrashing them in round 22 and Sydney then knocking them out in their elimination final.

Carlton will now meet the winner of Saturday's Hawthorn-Melbourne game at Launceston in the NAB Cup quarter-finals.

That match is scheduled for March 1 at Telstra Dome.

Blues defender Jarrad Waite had a strong game, but he could come under video review for a clash with Lindsay Thomas in the second term.

While Thomas needed help from the trainers, he did not leave the field.

The other new draftee Carlton unveiled in this game, third-round pick Mitch Robinson, copped a couple of solid knocks but worked extremely hard and showed a lot of promise.

North's first choice at No.9 in the draft, Jack Ziebell, picked up 12 disposals and kicked two goals, including a great gather and snap in the last term.

North coach Dean Laidley said Pratt was badly hurt in the collision with Fevola and had been taken to hospital.

The key defender will not be ready for round one.

"It doesn't look good at all - it's definitely ribs. The doctor thinks he has some bleeding on the lung," Laidley said.

"The next 24 hours will determine the significance of the injury.

"He's a very good player for us, he's got the courage and he's stood there in front of one of the Carlton key forwards and copped the whack like that - but that's footy.

"I wouldn't have thought he could play round one, given the information I've got."

Overall, Laidley said the Kangaroos were in the middle of a heavy training block and that had showed, but there were still no excuses for playing that badly.

"We looked like we were running through mud - at this time of year, we were always focussed on round one (of the regular season)," Laidley said.

"But as I say, you still don't want to get beaten like that - is it a physical thing or a mental thing?"

By contrast, Blues coach Brett Ratten was rapt with his team's polished performance.

"We had a really good purple patch there through the third quarter and our intensity in the first half was good," he said.

"It's a trial game and you think 'where are we at?' - we're still finding our way, but it was a really good step in the right direction."

Ratten said Yarran would only miss one or two weeks with the ankle injury.

Carlton experimented with rookie Sam Jacobs in the ruck, while recruits Chris Johnson (Melbourne) and Greg Bentley (Port Adelaide) impressed Ratten.

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