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Today we turn our attention to the Carlton Blues’ prospects for 2016, having already covered the Adelaide Crows and Brisbane Lions.
Coming off the worst season in their 152-year history, the Carlton Football Club will be looking to start fresh in 2016 and move into the future.
With former Hawthorn assistant Brendon Bolton at the helm, the Blues will enter 2016 with one goal in mind and that is to get games into their younger players and begin to rebuild a positive culture around the club.
2015 was an absolute disaster for the Blues. There is simply no other way to look at it. They sacked Mick Malthouse mid-season after the AFL’s most experienced coach failed to turn the Blues into a premiership contender.
Instead, Malthouse leaves Carlton with many fans questioning his coaching tactics over the past few years, as his decision to ignore young talent for extended periods frustrated many.
Interim coach John Baker did a solid job after Malthouse’s sacking, but it was already a lost cause. This was compounded by a 138-point thrashing from Hawthorn on a Friday night in Round 17.
That was only one of the Blues’ many embarrassing losses in 2015 and the club will hope the days of 100-point losses are behind them.
That hope may be justified with the arrival of number one draft pick Jacob Weitering.
Weitering has been proclaimed as the best defender seen in the AFL draft in years and when looking at the tape of his play at the TAC-Cup, Under-18 championships and the NAB AFL Academy, it is easy to see why.
Weitering’s strong hands and marking ability stands out the most, as he averaged just fewer than eight marks a game in the TAC-Cup. The powerful, towering and strong hands that Weitering possess makes him a lock for the Blues’ best 22 and his 15.1 beep test score shows he is ready for the fast pace and speed of the AFL.
Along with Weitering, the Blues also picked up Harry McKay, Charlie Curnow, David Cunningham and Jack Silvagni at the draft and while all of those players have the potential it is hard to see them breaking into the best 22 come Round 1.
Best 22
B: Kristian Jaksch, Michael Jamison, Jacob Weitering
HB: Sam Docherty, Sam Rowe, Zac Tuohy
C: Ed Curnow, Patrick Cripps, Kade Simpson
HF: Dale Thomas, Andrejs Everitt, Dylan Buckley
F: Sam Kerridge, Levi Casboult, Andrew Walker
Foll: Matthew Kreuzer, Marc Murphy, Bryce Gibbs
INT: Cameron Wood, Dennis Armfield, Lachie Plowman, Blaine Boekhorst
MVP: Marc Murphy
He is the captain, the best and fairest and the heart and soul of the club, so the questions surrounding whether Murphy should remain the club’s leader for 2016 are ridiculous and need to stop immediately.
Murphy is a model of consistency for the Blues and his 2015 season was simply another indicator of that. He averaged 26.8 disposals, 15.3 kicks, 11.5 handballs and 4.2 marks per game, which included a 37-disposal performance in the aforementioned 138-point loss to the Hawks. Murphy is an elite-level AFL midfielder and all signs point to him getting better in 2016.
Future star: Patrick Cripps
Is it fair to call the runner-up of the club’s best and fairest (by one vote by the way) a future star? Probably not, but in the Blues’ case, Cripps is both a star in the present and a star of the future.
Cripps blends in his silky-smooth game with an element of toughness in the midfield, as he averaged 23.6 disposals, 15.6 handballs, 7.9 kicks and 3.2 marks per game in 2015. Among rising stars, Cripps ranked first in clearances, effective disposals and contested possessions, as he proved a class above the AFL’s other emerging talent. Cripps was one of the only positives in 2015 for the Blues and the sky is the limit for the Canberra native.
Make or break: Dale Thomas
The marquee free agent signing from a few years ago and one of Malthouse’s favourite players, Thomas is faced with a career-defining 2016 season. He has yet to capture the form he had at Collingwood due to multiple injuries and poor play.
After another lost season, Thomas must be ready to raise his game in 2016. He won’t be picked in the team because of the coach loving him, as Bolton has no previous relationship with Thomas like Malthouse did. Thomas has been criticised for being soft and not playing his hardest with the Blues but with a new coach, young talent coming through and an injury-free pre-season, Thomas has no excuses to have another underwhelming campaign.
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