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AFL 2015 preview: Carlton Blues

20th November, 2014
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20th November, 2014
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Yesterday Brisbane was picked as slight improvers but not kicking enough goals to seal a finals spot. On to Carlton, now are still waiting for the Mick Malthouse revolution to launch.

Last season
The Blues came in with great expectation looking to build on their 2013 final appearance. Malthouse’s golden child Dale Thomas joined from Collingwood and improvement was expected from a host of players.

The Blues again were awful early, and then from Round 8 to Round 23 were the pillar of consistency hovering from 12th to 14th, finally sealing 13th spot.

Josh Bootsma exposed himself, immediately getting the axe, with Jeff Garlett and Mitch Robinson partaking in late-night antics which saw their exit.

The highlights were the improvement of Sam Rowe and Levi Casboult, who provided options at either end.

Next season
The off-season saw the previous season’s leading goal kicker Jarrad Waite departing, with Liam Jones and Kristian Jaksch leading the arrivals. The Blues have lost experience but have also managed to remove some of the negative influences around the club.

The issues for Carlton this year look to be midfield pace and a player who can kick a bag of goals. Don’t be surprised if Casboult has spent the pre-season straightening his boot, while great hope will be instilled into the new recruits to have a boom season.

Having said all this, I am expecting the Blues to continue their consistency of last season and manage to be out of finals contention by around Round 18, grabbing a spot around 12th to 14th.

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Who to look out for
Daniel Menzel is one of those rare players who can take a grab overhead and has an uncanny sense for goal. A draft risk coming off a knee reconstruction, he was always going to take extra time to develop and gain confidence. He showed glimpses of brilliance last season, expect him to build on that this season, pushing higher up the ground and gathering more ball.

Dylan Buckley was a revelation early last season, showing the desperation the rest of his teammates lacked. Coming back from injury expect him to hold a place in the starting 18 if he displays the same intensity.

Needs a big year
Dale Thomas looked sluggish last year, losing his burst of speed following his ankle injury. Towards the end of the year he showed improvement but was a shadow of a player on his pay rate. It’s hard to define his best position, losing his kicking ability ruling him out of the floating half back position. Expect him to line up at half forward with Mick giving him a free reign to push into the midfield or to the goal square as he pleases.

Robbie Warnock needs a big year. The Blues invested a lot to get him to Carlton and he is yet to come close to showing signs of repayment.

Cam Wood is knocking down the door to support Matthew Kreuzer, or even lead the ruck department, so Warnock will need to grab early chances.

Best 22
FB: Rowe, Jamison, Tuohy
HB: Simpson, Henderson, Yarran
C: Gibbs, Murphy, Carrazzo
HF: Thomas, Jaksch, Judd
FF: Menzel, Casboult, Walker
R: Kreuzer, Murphy, Curnow
I: Warnock, Everitt, Cripps, Buckley

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