Opinion
Last year was David Teague’s first full year in charge at the Carlton Football Club after a stint as caretaker coach in 2019.
The Blues finished the 2020 season in 11th position with seven wins for the season. In isolation it might not sound all that impressive, but Carlton has been a poorly-performed side for the best part of a decade.
The 2013 season the last time the Blues managed to win more than seven games in a year and the last time they played finals football.
It is why it was incredibly surprising that some media pundits believe David Teague was under intense pressure before the 2021 campaign had even begun.
Last month Caroline Wilson was pushing the narrative on Footy Classified, saying “I think David Teague is under as much pressure as any coach going into this year. I think you‘ve got a board – the Carlton board – looking for some credibility and I think they see Alastair Clarkson as their salvation.”
Before the Round 3 clash against Fremantle, Adam Cooney echoed similar sentiments in the pre-game discussion: “The pressure is coming, it’s already there for David Teague.”
Fortunately for Carlton, they picked up their first win of the season in impressive fashion, dismantling Fremantle by 45 points at Marvel Stadium.
The Blues followed up this performance with an 11-point victory over Gold Coast last Saturday night, which has the club sitting inside the top eight at the completion of Round 4.
Fans do not like to hear the phrase ‘rebuilding’ when they have been starved of success for so long. It generally means the expectation of playing finals and winning premierships is not in the immediate future.
In the case of David Teague, he cannot be held responsible for the poor trading, drafting, player development and poor performance for years before he arrived at the club.
It is easy to forget that in 2018 Carlton finished bottom with two wins for the year. This included nine losses over nine goals, three of these over 100 points.
The first response to this level of performance is the need to become a more competitive outfit. This has transpired under David Teague. Last season, the biggest Carlton loss for the year was 31 points to Hawthorn. Three losses for the season were under two goals so it would be fair to say Carlton was in the contest most weeks.
A demanding fixture list awaits Carlton with includes Port Adelaide, Brisbane, Western Bulldogs and Melbourne in the next five weeks.
Teague is currently contracted until the end of 2022, so you suspect there is no immediate danger of losing his job.
Good performance in the next month and ideally a couple of wins against quality opposition will help reinforce the belief that Carlton is moving in the right direction slowly but surely.
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