Carlton were competitive against Richmond and Port Adelaide in the first two rounds, which is a good effort for a club that’s still developing, but I did tend to agree with Kane Cornes that the players seem content with honourable losses.
The last two rounds were always going to be important for Brendon Bolton’s men, and they’ve failed dismally.
That inaccurate kicking cost them in the Sydney game is a myth – the Swans had 100 more disposals, and yet still laid 18 more tackles, which is a sign of poor work rate.
The Gold Coast game was simply one they had to win, and the effort was undoubtedly there – the Blues had more of the ball, won the contested possession count, laid more tackles, but still failed to win.
Carlton’s efficiency when going forward has been appalling. They’ve went 58 straight games without scoring 100 points, and 18 straight games without scoring 80 points.
That was supposed to change this year, with a more attacking game plan, but it’s been the same old story.
The game plan and team selection made no sense on the weekend. You’re going to the Gold Coast, a place which is usually dewy even during the day, and you play with three key forwards.
The worst part is when Carlton were kicking long into their forward line in the second half, they were kicking it to Michael Gibbons, who is 175 centimetres tall, and hasn’t kicked a goal all season.
When that is happening, it’s pretty clear that something is fundamentally wrong with the communication between players and coaches.
There’s no excuses this year. Apart from Sam Docherty and Matthew Kreuzer, they are injury free.
So why aren’t players like Lochie O’Brien, Cameron Polson, Patrick Kerr and Sam Petrevski-Seton showing any signs of improvement?
The players they’ve traded in is another disaster. They’ve traded in ten Greater Western Sydney players since Stephen Silvagni got to the club, and none of them are even B-grade players.
To a lesser extent, the rookie and pre-season drafting makes no sense. Jason Tutt, Alex Silvagni and Matt Shaw were never even going to be serviceable players, let alone good.
The only good player they drafted in the rookie draft was Billy Gowers, who they subsequently delisted. He’s now a vital player in the Western Bulldogs’ forward line.
They were the worst team in the league when Bolton got there, and in his fourth year, they’re still the worst team. What hope are supporters supposed to have?
They’ve got the Western Bulldogs, Hawthorn and North Melbourne in their next three. If they can’t win one of them, it might be time for Brendon Bolton and Stephen Silvagni to be on their way.
bryan neale
Guest
Carltons recruiting has been abysmal for years.Murphy was too small and soft to be captain.Your figurehead must be somebody of substance.Gibbs was soft and Kruezer is so injury prone i cant believe Carlton pin their hopes on him.I dont know if its your recruiting staff or your recruiting staff being dictated to;but they lie at the crux of your problems.The Dorkers,Dees and Blues all had years of access to top draft picks and so often went small at the draft table.A good big man will always beat a good little man.I think that some recruiters pick drafts in their own image.It is getting more streamlined now but a lot of damage has been done to some clubs.
Blue Bagger #13
Roar Rookie
I can't wait till the wins come and all the nay-sayers eat their words. Jeez folks. Rome wasn't built in a day. We have finally got a quality list that is starting to mature. Their effort and desire is there. Maturity is occurring naturally. Take a deep breath baggers. Success is coming. There was never going to be gradual improvement in the first three years and the club never once shirked the task or sugar coated what it was doing. We gradually gutted our list, replacing a majority of players over three years. This is the first year that real cohesion and continuity can begin. No doubt there are current errors with regard to the set up. Don't mind the three talls but perhaps throw Fisher in as a small forward and put Gibbons on the ball where he is actually effective for example. But I digress. The one thing that Bolts needs to do IMO is to instil a ruthless edge that we currently do not have. A ruthlessness he would have seen at Hawthorn. We should have put the foot down in the last quarter against the Suns but we got nervous. No doubt we have forgotten how to win but once we do we must rip our wins from our opponents grasp, not ask politely for them.
Adam
Guest
Click Bait!
Grimo
Roar Rookie
This team has lacked fundamental skills since Malthouse. Their kicking to targets is horrible. Even if they won last week, this team will again place bottom 2 by a long way. Look at Kreuzer, Gibbs, Murphy. 10 year players. How many finals campaigns? Kreuz and Murphy now see another rebuild of a failed team of the decade.
Grimo
Guest
The skill level alone is what bothers me about this team. It hasn't improved in 5 years. This team loses because of turnovers and inability to hit targets. I watch them painfully most weeks, and nothing is improving. The jury is out on so many of Carlton's players. To me, too many are simply not up to it. A failure in recruitment, multiple times. How can teams like Hawthorn, Geelong, Collingwood regenerate themselves yet, Carlton cannot. Murphy, Kreuzer, Gibbs. Three straight no. 1 picks, that collectively would struggle to have 100 wins in their careers at Carlton. Diabolical predicament. Yes the GWS seconds have been the last straw. SOS and Bolts, time to go.
Fat Toad
Roar Rookie
In many ways Carlton is in a similar position to Melbourne pre-Paul Roos. Good players came in and were never correctly developed, rather than focusing on best utilization of their resources, they tried to throw games to improve their draft picks. Young players of great potential were burned on a pyre of maladministration and their great dreams and potential lost because nobody provided an example of how it should be done. Most of the comments below are about the minutia around individuals and personalities, but if Carlton are to improve they need to have a different set of values to what they put on display each week. They need: . to know they are there to make history not just to become part of it. . to clearly understand what they represent. . to understand what is not negotiable. . be able to explain to anyone at a moments notice what it is about their team that is special and what separates Carlton from everyone else : their culture. Currently, Carlton lack a desirable culture and play without heart.
Fat Toad
Roar Rookie
As an example of what can be achieved, after recruiting based punishments, Penn State have risen from the ashes much faster than Carlton. At the end of last season the Nittany Lions were back in a bowl game. Penn State love their football team and the Jerry Sandusky scandal really shook everyone, students and alumni alike. But, Penn State developed a plan / path way back, it correctly assessed their strategic position, their strengths and opportunities. I doubt anyone could have thought their come back could have been so fast. Ultimately, I guess that it shows how professional was Penn State and how amateurish is Carlton.
User
Roar Rookie
Nah, when you're the primary caregiver time is no longer as precious as when I worked away. Man Russell Brand arrgghhh but then hugh Laurie in nearly his best role since Blackadder
Macca
Roar Rookie
Being with your children doesn't require you to be present? You might need to rethink that. And I won't here a bad word said against hop.
User
Roar Rookie
Quality entertainment is debatable as it's the kids watching hop. Fun Macca, why do you involve yourself? Because it's fun and I'm guessing neither of us are doing something that requires us to be present and in the moment I dunno if it was a line in a Celine Dion song I'm pretty sure it will.
Macca
Roar Rookie
"I don’t actually care about this beyond the absurd entertainment you keep providing" And yet you have presumably quality entertainment right in front of you but you have to respond to me. "more than occasional 30sec distraction for myself." Why let yourself become distracted over and over and over again, be present, be who you are with, enjoy where you are. "Just let go , just let go and fly Macca, you’re worth it." That line doesn't really work after I have already done it, does it.
User
Roar Rookie
Just let go , just let go and fly Macca, you're worth it. You can keep this up trying to get a sniff of me actually caring but as I don't actually care about this beyond the absurd entertainment you keep providing it really isn't providing more than occasional 30sec distraction for myself.
Macca
Roar Rookie
“Nah just have very little care in indulging you while watching a movie.” And yet you keep responding, if you really had little care you would simply watch the movie. You should work on being “present” more. “becoming increasingly obvious you require the validation of people noticing you” And yet I am not the one who has spent the best part of 2 days arguing things I don’t believe on a thread about a team I don’t support – this comment seems to be classic projection. After all it is you who ” tried to walk away” but couldn’t.
User
Roar Rookie
Nah just have very little care in indulging you while watching a movie. I'll do so though as it's becoming increasingly obvious you require the validation of people noticing you regardless of whether it's a positive or negative experience. This is ok Macca as it takes many colours to make a rainbow and you my friend are violet and you should be shooting for the sky.
Macca
Roar Rookie
Like isn't the same as value. You sound a little antagonized.
User
Roar Rookie
Ok high school English teacher I'll make sure I file that away for future times I am trying to make myself look better another, much appreciated. Well Macca I can tell you as someone who may harm my self worth with that stinging rebuke(which will probably get col and maybe ad validation) I like myself, I will continue liking myself and will never hand over control of part of emotional response to a faceless group I'm never going to meet.
Macca
Roar Rookie
"feeling justified" and doing something "with a large amount of justification" are two very different things. In the first the feeling may be unwarranted, in the second you are making a statement of fact. "I’ve accepted how ridiculous this stunt may paint me and am very much at peace with it" You really should value yourself more.
User
Roar Rookie
Nah I've accepted how ridiculous this stunt may paint me and am very much at peace with it, actually the pot shots you keep justifying to you yourself reinforces why it was worth it. In regards to paragraph one, again you are trying to twist the narrative to desperately make your look smarter, it's an adorable parlour trick as one can feel justified even in the most flimsy thing, it's as if your basic comprehension level is sadly lacking.
Macca
Roar Rookie
"If that is what antagonizes yourself Macca" Your intention and my reaction are two different things. "you jump at even the most flimsy of Carlton related subjects" I didn't realise a call for the coach and list manager to be sacked were such flimsy subjects. It is odd that in one post you claim I had "a large amount of justification" but the next it is "flimsy", almost as is you don't actually understand the meaning of the words you use. Anyway I doubt you will ever find the self awareness to "notice the absurdity of your behaviour" with your "inability.. to let things that are ridiculous or even worse" actively promote those things, let alone come to the realisation that "you flatter me none the less".
andyfnq
Roar Rookie
Agree Fat Toad. The search for a quick fix lasted years. When they could no longer use their chequebook to buy players from SA, the moved on to other quick fixes - the buy ready-made players, the messiah coach who will solve everything being the most obvious.