Carlton key forward Jarrad Waite will have scans over the next 24 hours on his left-knee injury as skipper Marc Murphy insists the Blues are not out of AFL finals contention despite their crushing loss to Collingwood.

The Blues were 28 points up during the first quarter of Friday night’s round-15 clash, but conceded three goals late in the opening term after Waite limped off.

Collingwood booted six goals to Carlton’s one in the second quarter to grab a 24-point lead at halftime. The Magpies increased their advantage to 47 points at three-quarter time, allowing them to cruise to to a sweet victory 17.16 (118) to 12.5 (77) against their arch rivals in front of 78,224 fans.

The Blues (6-8 win-loss) sit two games outside the top eight.

It was Carlton’s heaviest loss of the season, although they’ll start favourites for next Saturday night’s clash with St Kilda at Etihad Stadium.

Murphy, who returned to action wearing a helmet after breaking his cheekbone against Hawthorn three weeks ago, had 18 possessions and one clearance and didn’t have a huge influence on the match.

“There’s still eight games of footy left,” Murphy said on Saturday.

“A lot can happen in eight weeks. We’ve just got to worry about responding against St Kilda next week.

“I had a chat to Jarrad (Waite) while I was on the bench last night. He was pretty disappointed.

“Hopefully for Jarrad and the club it’s not too bad, and we can get him out there soon.”

Eddie Betts suffered a hip-muscle injury but Murphy is confident the small forward will be fit to take on the Saints at Etihad Stadium on July 13.

Carlton coach Mick Malthouse said Waite’s injury upset the balance of his side but it wasn’t the reason for the club’s defeat, which was more to do with Collingwood’s dominance across all positions.

“It’s very hard to find one good player,” he said.

Malthouse also isn’t giving up on an unlikely finals berth, saying he’ll be telling his players to not even glance at the ladder.

“The ladder is totally and utterly irrelevant for us,” he said.