PATRICK Cripps receiving a hard tag ahead of captain Marc Murphy should be viewed as "a very good thing for the Carlton Football Club", according to interim coach John Barker.

After just 12 games, Cripps was targeted by Gold Coast tagger Andrew Raines, allowing Murphy to finish with 32 possessions and 13 handball receives under little pressure.

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Cripps, meanwhile, fought his way back from just three possessions in the opening term to win his match-up with 20 possessions (10 contested) and seven clearances. 

The 20-year-old could have punished Raines on the scoreboard but missed his three shots on goal. 

"He gets educated on what that looks like, he gets to learn how to cope with that, and he starts to work out mechanisms on how to deal with those situations," Barker said. 

"I'm sure they will be coming thick and fast throughout his future."

WATCH: John Barker's full post-match media conference

Barker was pleased with young star's output over the match and said it was possible clubs would continue to overlook Murphy in favour of sending a run-with player to Cripps. 

"We've got some really good mids, so the positive from that is we need to spread the load," he said. 

Raines overstepped the mark with his tactics in the fourth quarter when he landed a blow on Cripps' stomach, giving away a free kick in front of goal.

He was reported and will face scrutiny from the Match Review Panel on Monday.

Raines finished with eight possessions and gave away six free kicks, with Suns coach Rodney Eade conceding the rookie lost his composure after a strong start. 

"He became undisciplined, (but) he's playing with bone on bone in his knee and he's done a terrific job for us coming off the rookie list," Eade said.

"He was recruited really to help our depth and our NEAFL (team), so for him to be playing AFL shows you how many injuries we've had.

"I thought his first quarter was fantastic. He kept Cripps to three possessions, did really well." 

Barker said the Blues would need to assess injured half-forward Troy Menzel on Monday after he was substituted with a knee concern.

Menzel came off the ground in the first quarter and was assessed by doctors with concerns over his right knee, which was reconstructed in his junior days with a LARS ligament. 

The 20-year-old was able to return but his knee became sorer, Barker said. 

"We're unsure at this stage, we'll have to assess once he cools down," the coach said.

"He could still keep going, but it seemed to get a bit worse."

Barker said he was pleased with the Blues' run off half-back through Chris Yarran and Zac Tuohy, as well the ruck work of Mathew Kreuzer in the 34-point win. 

He warned his players to "remain tempered" in their mindset after back-to-back wins. 

"I think our confidence is growing … but wins are hard to come by," he said. 

"The second you think you're going a little bit better than you are, reality kicks in very quickly."