http://www.theage.com.au/afl/afl-news/carlton-and-the-culture-club-20141206-121qw9.html
Another bitter attack on Carlton and its "money" culture. The article had some good points, but single-ing out Carlton as a club that buys success is clearly incorrect.
Apparently we are led to believe by Jack Niall (yet another person in the media) that the only club that used "chequebook recruiting" in the VFL/AFL during the 1970s to the 1990s was Carlton. Apparently Hawthorn never recruited John Platten, Buckenara, Abbot, Jarman, Ben Allan and Darren Pritchard amongst many others. North never recruited Barry Cable, Glendinning and Malcolm Blight - those guys never played in the VFL apparently and they never were lured over by money.
Poor recruiting is only part of the problem, what about the AFL head office's attitude towards Carlton in relation to other clubs?
Has this writer analysed why North Melbourne gets over 10 million in AFL funding more than Carlton since 2006. Could that impact on how a team goes perhaps? 10 million in the bank surely helps. Why did Hawthorn get the Tasmanian deal alone etc from the AFL? Let's write an article on why elements of the AFL doesn't consider Carlton a key plank in its growth. That would be an interesting article.