Coaching Staff Brendon Bolton - Senior Coach - Locked in until end of 2020 (23/5/18)

[I bleed Blue]

Think the disappointment is because we thought we'd progressed from last year both defensively and offensively.

One swallow doth not make a summer.

Everyone was happy with how we played during the JLT. Everyone was fairly pleased with our effort against the premiers.

Then one loss and all of a sudden we have gone backwards? Lets get a bigger sample size of the season before we declare the sky falling.

If last week becomes a trend then fair enough. Lets see the response for this pies match.

 

[FRUMPY]

You trade Gibbs and lose Doc before the first round and that is 2 of our best from last year out of the side. Couple that with our most important player out in Kruezer and midfield grunt in Keneddy, we were always going to struggle. Depth takes time.

I do think players like Mullett over Cuningham and O'Shea getting a game are head scratchers but to be fair Mullett played most of last year with the roos and hasn't been that bad.

As for the scorelines, all teams are scoring heavily and will for the first 4-5 rounds. By then clubs will work out each other and scoring will lessen. By round 8-10 we will know what improvements we have made and moreso how Bolton is travelling. I have no issue with him at the minute. This year was always going to be similar to last year with Gibbs and Doc gone. Again just looking for young guys to begin to show more, ala Curnow, Fisher already have

 

[Arr0w]

You trade Gibbs and lose Doc before the first round and that is 2 of our best from last year out of the side. Couple that with our most important player out in Kruezer and midfield grunt in Keneddy, we were always going to struggle. Depth takes time.

I do think players like Mullett over Cuningham and O'Shea getting a game are head scratchers but to be fair Mullett played most of last year with the roos and hasn't been that bad.

As for the scorelines, all teams are scoring heavily and will for the first 4-5 rounds. By then clubs will work out each other and scoring will lessen. By round 8-10 we will know what improvements we have made and moreso how Bolton is travelling. I have no issue with him at the minute. This year was always going to be similar to last year with Gibbs and Doc gone. Again just looking for young guys to begin to show more, ala Curnow, Fisher already have

Probably the best post i have read regarding the current ( 2 games) situation and how it will unfold. As is the case with every year

 

[rog1995]

I still maintain it was a young group finding the balance between attack & defence and was reactive. Last 2 years we trained to be highly defence oriented. Over the summer we trained to be more offensive. In round one we were too attacking and Bolton said we need to work on the balance between the two.

With a young group and some deckchairs it takes time and will look ugly until they get it right

Well the defense is where the issues are as well. For a start what ever happened to play next to your opponent when the opposition has the ball? Who gets to play on the opposition small forwards now without Bryne? Why did we trade in Matt Shaw and O'Shea when clearly we need a back pocket as a priority. We could've taken an Ethan Penrith type instead.

 

[Arr0w]

Well the defense is where the issues are as well. For a start what ever happened to play next to your opponent when the opposition has the ball? Who gets to play on the opposition small forwards now without Bryne? Why did we trade in Matt Shaw and O'Shea when clearly we need a back pocket as a priority. We could've taken an Ethan Penrith type instead.

Ethan Penrith? Please

 

[passmark]

It looks like tackling stats are important again, ours are diabolical.

Is it deliberate (committing less numbers to the contest) or a function of our midfield and forwards having low stat numbers?

I'd hope that if you haven't got the ball or can't get it you can at least pressure the opposition when they have it.

 

[Soapy V]

Well the defense is where the issues are as well. For a start what ever happened to play next to your opponent when the opposition has the ball? Who gets to play on the opposition small forwards now without Bryne? Why did we trade in Matt Shaw and O'Shea when clearly we need a back pocket as a priority. We could've taken an Ethan Penrith type instead.

Cuningham or even Garlett. Defence will be awesome especially with an improved midfield. Not an issue for me. Once it settles and get the experience we will have Weitering Marchbank Macreadie Plowman Cuningham Byrne Williamson Schumacher Docherty maybe O'Brien McDaid Silvagni Jones ASOS G-Mac to pick from. Looks very very good to me.

 

[Metalcrusher]

Understand your point but I would be extremely disappointed if things change and we deviate off our current path. The belief at the moment is things are progressing as well as could be expected. This years draft/trade period will be another big one.

Extremely important that the club holds it's nerve and doesn't bow to outside pressure. I have to believe them when they say it's going to take time and no more quick fixes. Once the pieces fall into place, the kids get enough experience it will be a very exciting period for the club.

**** the outside .... if they had it their way, we would remain the laughing stock of the AFL for another 20 years ...... We are going to trip/stumble/fall along the way to the top.

Get enough talent in the top 26-28 players, surround them with great coaches, and results WILL come.

 

[thylacine60]

I hope when I finally make a mistake, that people dont jump on me so quickly

like you make mistakes.......

 

[Soapy V]

It looks like tackling stats are important again, ours are diabolical.

Is it deliberate (committing less numbers to the contest) or a function of our midfield and forwards having low stat numbers?

I'd hope that if you haven't got the ball or can't get it you can at least pressure the opposition when they have it.

It's called youth. Hard to sustain over 4 quarters

 

[JustaBattler]

O'Shea/Mullett/Lamb/Polson are 4 more duds who Bolton has felt he had to play because of injuries add Garlett finding his feet to Murphy who cant tackle unless someone actually falls over near him - now take away a ruck and an on baller remove your FF to the ruck, and spice it up with an 8 goal haul from one opposition player and you have the " lets worry about Bolton martini cocktail " served up for anyone wanting to drink that kind of pain relief.

Carlton go into every game every week with the far weaker less developed or jut plain average on a good day bunch of players being propped up by some developing stars - and Bolton has to keep enthusiasm belief and standards up, a lot of pressure on a young coach. Fortunately, he is a talented thinker and doesn't mind the challenge.

Couldnt care less for Gibbs leaving and I wish Murphy had gone with him - very bad luck to see Docherty/Williamson/Pickett/McCreadie/Lobbe/ASOS/Lang/Kreuzer/Kennedy all unavailable for round 2 forcing Bolton to play so many potatoes against a far more developed side full of its own stars playing under a new coach who knows (like every other coach) how to exploit Carlton's list weaknesses.

The reason Bolton has every right to be positive and optimistic and realistic is that he can see the positive indicators happening in front of his eyes on a daily basis and he can measure his own KPI against his own benchmarks. JLT and Richmond showed quite clearly that with a half decent side on the paddock Carlton was able to move the ball through the corridor and challenge two of the better defending side's defensive structures -in Hawthorn and Richmond. Palpable improvement right there folks!

the Suns game merely highlighted the continuing lack of depth on the list - something which only time and less injuries can fix. The only 'error' I can see Bolton having made was to not play McKay in the absence of SOJ and the move of Casboult to ruck duties. Is that decision on Bolton or McKay - no one knows.

This season wont really 'start' as far as fair measurement of progress until at least Bolton has the luxury of fielding a side with the best on our list sans Docherty. As players start returning the weekly team structure options improve and the ability to implement the developing game plan in a continuous cycle of improvement develops accordingly.

In the meantime, people can point fingers at this player or the other for not being able to make up for the collective aggregate deficiencies further downfield - between the arcs. Lets not forget that the 66 game rebuild to get to base line competitiveness with other Clubs is still a year away. the only thing Bolton has to be worried about is doing all the hard work building a list and a game style under extremely prejudicial circumstances only to have his tenure brought to and by some nuff nuffs who know nothing about football but feel like a change is warranted - in 2 years time.

Right now - Richardson/Buckley/Cameron should be coaches that are sweating.

 

[bmaurizio]

You trade Gibbs and lose Doc before the first round and that is 2 of our best from last year out of the side. Couple that with our most important player out in Kruezer and midfield grunt in Keneddy, we were always going to struggle. Depth takes time.

I do think players like Mullett over Cuningham and O'Shea getting a game are head scratchers but to be fair Mullett played most of last year with the roos and hasn't been that bad.

As for the scorelines, all teams are scoring heavily and will for the first 4-5 rounds. By then clubs will work out each other and scoring will lessen. By round 8-10 we will know what improvements we have made and moreso how Bolton is travelling. I have no issue with him at the minute. This year was always going to be similar to last year with Gibbs and Doc gone. Again just looking for young guys to begin to show more, ala Curnow, Fisher already have

Agreed with you and succtiently described. Most teams will better understand their momentum and potenial for the a season after a period of 6 to 8 weeks.
In our case it may take longer as we have a very young group of players.
Go Baggers

 

[Metalcrusher]

O'Shea/Mullett/Lamb/Polson are 4 more duds who Bolton has felt he had to play because of injuries add Garlett finding his feet to Murphy who cant tackle unless someone actually falls over near him - now take away a ruck and an on baller remove your FF to the ruck, and spice it up with an 8 goal haul from one opposition player and you have the " lets worry about Bolton martini cocktail " served up for anyone wanting to drink that kind of pain relief.

Carlton go into every game every week with the far weaker less developed or jut plain average on a good day bunch of players being propped up by some developing stars - and Bolton has to keep enthusiasm belief and standards up, a lot of pressure on a young coach. Fortunately, he is a talented thinker and doesn't mind the challenge.

Couldnt care less for Gibbs leaving and I wish Murphy had gone with him - very bad luck to see Docherty/Williamson/Pickett/McCreadie/Lobbe/ASOS/Lang/Kreuzer/Kennedy all unavailable for round 2 forcing Bolton to play so many potatoes against a far more developed side full of its own stars playing under a new coach who knows (like every other coach) how to exploit Carlton's list weaknesses.

The reason Bolton has every right to be positive and optimistic and realistic is that he can see the positive indicators happening in front of his eyes on a daily basis and he can measure his own KPI against his own benchmarks. JLT and Richmond showed quite clearly that with a half decent side on the paddock Carlton was able to move the ball through the corridor and challenge two of the better defending side's defensive structures -in Hawthorn and Richmond. Palpable improvement right there folks!

the Suns game merely highlighted the continuing lack of depth on the list - something which only time and less injuries can fix. The only 'error' I can see Bolton having made was to not play McKay in the absence of SOJ and the move of Casboult to ruck duties. Is that decision on Bolton or McKay - no one knows.

This season wont really 'start' as far as fair measurement of progress until at least Bolton has the luxury of fielding a side with the best on our list sans Docherty. As players start returning the weekly team structure options improve and the ability to implement the developing game plan in a continuous cycle of improvement develops accordingly.

In the meantime, people can point fingers at this player or the other for not being able to make up for the collective aggregate deficiencies further downfield - between the arcs. Lets not forget that the 66 game rebuild to get to base line competitiveness with other Clubs is still a year away. the only thing Bolton has to be worried about is doing all the hard work building a list and a game style under extremely prejudicial circumstances only to have his tenure brought to and by some nuff nuffs who know nothing about football but feel like a change is warranted - in 2 years time.

Right now - Richardson/Buckley/Cameron should be coaches that are sweating.

​

Bit harsh on Polson he is fourth round pick who is 19 years old still ..... ​

 

[Lace_Out]

I hope when I finally make a mistake, that people dont jump on me so quickly

In this place? Good luck haha

Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk

 

[Soapy V]

Bit harsh on Polson he is fourth round pick who is 19 years old still ..... ​

and playing his second game in 2 years. FFS

 

[Arr0w]

It looks like tackling stats are important again, ours are diabolical.

Is it deliberate (committing less numbers to the contest) or a function of our midfield and forwards having low stat numbers?

I'd hope that if you haven't got the ball or can't get it you can at least pressure the opposition when they have it.

It is a mix of both, but the balance needs to be better and I am sure they will find the right balance

First 2 years, as we all know, the focus was on defensive setups, not just in the backline, but all over the ground. Backline played a tighter zone, with the inclusion of a +1. Midfield set up defensively at stoppages, while the forward setup, was also based around defensive structure. All of this kept us in most games, but our scoring remained low.

This year, that has been turned around completely. Backline zone is more open, with no clear +1. HB line starting position has also pushed further up the ground. The midfield group setup, is also more attacking in positioning, to enable a cleaner transition forward, when we win the stoppage. Forward line has also setup in a more attacking nature. It really does need to come back a notch, as we are too exposed, when we turnover the ball. When your gameplan sets up this way, 2 way running is crucial, if one or two players, don't get back to help, it exposes all areas of the ground

Tackling has taken the biggest hit, due to this reason.

Bolts and the coaching staff, will be well aware of this and adjustments will be made quickly

 

[Lace_Out]

and playing his second game in 2 years. FFS

Exactly.
Yes he made mistakes. The real important thing to take in with his game is that he had lots of opportunities, by knowing where to be at the right time.

Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk

 

[Arr0w]

Exactly.
Yes he made mistakes. The real important thing to take in with his game is that he had lots of opportunities, by knowing where to be at the right time.

Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk

Great pick up

 

[JustaBattler]

ok Polson is the next big thing...

 

[Soapy V]

Exactly.
Yes he made mistakes. The real important thing to take in with his game is that he had lots of opportunities, by knowing where to be at the right time.

Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk

Agree. He is a very smart and skilful player. Has some real class that will become evident once he feels comfortable. People forget he didn't play a lot of junior football because of injury and missed a lot of last year to fix some injury issues. First ever pre season this year. Probably played no more than 40 games his entire life!

 

[Metalcrusher]

Geez jab at least give him 5 games before you decide lol!

 

[Soapy V]

ok Polson is the next big thing...

No one said that either but effectively writing him off after 2 games makes absolutely no sense

 

[Jeremias]

ok Polson is the next big thing...

You're writing off a 20 year old 4th round draft pick after 2 games at senior level.

I'm not sure it's those defending him with a little perspective are the ones deserving of the rolling eyes.

 

[passmark]

Bit harsh on Polson he is fourth round pick who is 19 years old still ..... ​

He's also had to play both those games in two of our worst team performances in two years.

Tough ask of a small mid.

 

[JustaBattler]

No one said thet either but effectively writing him off after 2 games makes absolutely no sense

Where do you play him Soapy ahead of which fit player? Sure give him a game of ten if you like but he has the dropsies and that means little self belief - a junior Kerridge without the fitness base or size. He should play VFL rack up 25+ every game and be super clean as well as a lot faster if he is to make an impact against good sides.

This notion of playing young kids because they are young only works with elite talent. if you clog up the side with too many experiments you end up with what we witnessed against Suns.