Carlton used to be a club that emphasised passion and pride, above all else. Even the odd touch of arrogance was there but it was there for a reason because we used to be respected and feared. Now I see my club in its current state, struggling for the past six years and barely showing a whimper. It hurts my mind. It hurts my soul. What have we become, that even our very own supporters wished for a spoon earlier this week just to get one place higher in the draft, and/or an extra pick? What has made this club so great over the best part of a hundred years is that it had pride, passion and the will to win. Even when the odds were great against us and the wins would do nothing for the seasons in question.
Call me an old school supporter if you will, but I do not believe a PP or any draft pick for that matter is worth destroying this pride for. The general idea of dropping games for one extra teenager who may or may not even turn out a superstar is quite disgusting, and embraces a losing mentality. Such a mentality should not be exposed to the younger playing group because such attitudes destroy confidence, it destroys their own belief that the club can go places with them contributing.
It also destroys cultures.
I admit that the PP will help, to an extent, but there have been many overly optimistic and even ridiculous claims. He will be the best player in the competition, he will be a 200 gamer, he will set us back 5 years if we miss him, he will instantly inspire those around him, he will turn water into wine, etc. But I am being a realist here – well, I think I am… this teenager may have a lot of potential but he has never played at senior level. He will need to be developed properly, in a good environment and nurtured by people who know what they are doing. All in all though, he will be a fresh fish and a nervous one at that, with the pressure of the entire club and supporter base on his shoulders. The bright white hope, at 18 years of age, taking the team and the club off the bottom - what expectation. I feel incredibly sorry for the kid. It is no good introducing kids in a team that thinks losing is OK – what good will that do to his confidence? What chance does he have to develop properly or at a faster rate when his team mates don’t give a damn about the jumper? Any kid will find it very hard to perform if he gets little support and is down on confidence, no matter how talented he is.
Is a single PP worth destroying our soul over? I don’t think it is – in fact, I think we can build a good team and have some success without the PP. Yes it will help, but retaining our pride and missing out won’t ruin our future. After all, it is only one individual. It all comes back to the players and the club having the right attitude – a winning one, like Carlton of old. Only then will we start seeing success if we begin to cut out this rot. I think we have a good young core already, and we can build on that. But some of the attitudes represented on this site disgusts me – one supporter even had a go with me for cheering for a win, and singing the song loudly if we do. So this is what we have become… over one pick? Using the excuse of tanking no doubt, which I think is simply an excuse supporters like to use to justify why their team is so crap. I don’t believe for a nanosecond players want to tank – they want to win. The Essendon game is proof in itself, just look at their genuine reactions at losing. Kouta can have his opinion on losing (seeing his reactions after losing, I don’t think he likes it either), so can Rhys-Jones – but I don’t think such talk would’ve been tolerated 10 years ago. I wonder what other legends like Nicholls, Doull, Southby, etc would think. Would they have supported losing? I’d assume not.
Opposition supporters can talk about us tanking all they want, but I am in the belief that you’re either good enough to win or you’re not. And those of you who think Carlton supporters here have no pride – well, you’re wrong. At least some of us do. If we are in the same position next year, I will be fighting the same fight.
Pride. Passion. Never let that go.
Call me an old school supporter if you will, but I do not believe a PP or any draft pick for that matter is worth destroying this pride for. The general idea of dropping games for one extra teenager who may or may not even turn out a superstar is quite disgusting, and embraces a losing mentality. Such a mentality should not be exposed to the younger playing group because such attitudes destroy confidence, it destroys their own belief that the club can go places with them contributing.
It also destroys cultures.
I admit that the PP will help, to an extent, but there have been many overly optimistic and even ridiculous claims. He will be the best player in the competition, he will be a 200 gamer, he will set us back 5 years if we miss him, he will instantly inspire those around him, he will turn water into wine, etc. But I am being a realist here – well, I think I am… this teenager may have a lot of potential but he has never played at senior level. He will need to be developed properly, in a good environment and nurtured by people who know what they are doing. All in all though, he will be a fresh fish and a nervous one at that, with the pressure of the entire club and supporter base on his shoulders. The bright white hope, at 18 years of age, taking the team and the club off the bottom - what expectation. I feel incredibly sorry for the kid. It is no good introducing kids in a team that thinks losing is OK – what good will that do to his confidence? What chance does he have to develop properly or at a faster rate when his team mates don’t give a damn about the jumper? Any kid will find it very hard to perform if he gets little support and is down on confidence, no matter how talented he is.
Is a single PP worth destroying our soul over? I don’t think it is – in fact, I think we can build a good team and have some success without the PP. Yes it will help, but retaining our pride and missing out won’t ruin our future. After all, it is only one individual. It all comes back to the players and the club having the right attitude – a winning one, like Carlton of old. Only then will we start seeing success if we begin to cut out this rot. I think we have a good young core already, and we can build on that. But some of the attitudes represented on this site disgusts me – one supporter even had a go with me for cheering for a win, and singing the song loudly if we do. So this is what we have become… over one pick? Using the excuse of tanking no doubt, which I think is simply an excuse supporters like to use to justify why their team is so crap. I don’t believe for a nanosecond players want to tank – they want to win. The Essendon game is proof in itself, just look at their genuine reactions at losing. Kouta can have his opinion on losing (seeing his reactions after losing, I don’t think he likes it either), so can Rhys-Jones – but I don’t think such talk would’ve been tolerated 10 years ago. I wonder what other legends like Nicholls, Doull, Southby, etc would think. Would they have supported losing? I’d assume not.
Opposition supporters can talk about us tanking all they want, but I am in the belief that you’re either good enough to win or you’re not. And those of you who think Carlton supporters here have no pride – well, you’re wrong. At least some of us do. If we are in the same position next year, I will be fighting the same fight.
Pride. Passion. Never let that go.
