Autopsy The 2018 Club & Player Review (A season to mostly forget, but...)

TeeJay Blue

Norm Smith Medallist
Feb 11, 2015
5,028
8,285
AFL Club
Carlton
Didn't see a review for this season posted up. So I decided to be responsible for that. I understand why nobody did though. I mean after all, it is the club's worst season since Federation began.

But even in the darkest of times, shines the faintest of lights. We saw brilliant patches from the likes of Paddy Dow, Harry McKay and Lochie O'Brien. Charlie Curnow and Zac Fisher took the next step in their development. Patrick Cripps broke new records. Many stars signed on, believing in the process. A win against * was nothing short of sweet, especially when it costed them an opportunity to play finals. The win against Gold Coast showed how united the boys were, especially when everybody came over to congratulate the goal-kickers. Sam Docherty was a sight for sore eyes on the bench, playing a coaching role that will all but keep him as a possible contender for captaincy (although I do encourage the idea of him and Cripps sharing it).

There were, many forgettable moments during the year and I won't deny that I got caught up in the emotion of them. We broke a lot of records for all the wrong things, but I know for sure that things are eventually going to turn around sooner or later. Of course I'm not going to say that things can't get worse, because I did three years ago. Look what happened! But it is a cycle. It's irregular, but it's cyclical. All teams will have their good years and their bad years. We won't stay terrible forever. The real question is whether we will achieve what we are aiming for?

I decided to post all my results and pieces of information here rather than scatter them around the place. It's just makes it all look neater.
I'll start of by posting a review piece from my blog. But before you read it, I remind you of this paragraph I extracted from it. Take it into account as it is quite important:

I'm not going to list all of the reasons I found for this disastrous year, because I already have (Carlton Football Club: 10 Reasons For The Horror). But what I will do is conduct a brief polished review of what took place. Possibly look at what went right and what didn't. Focus on certain players. Maybe provide some numbers and see what needs to be addressed over the off-season. This does have my opinions standing out. But once again, this blog is about welcoming different opinions anyway. If you disagree with something, feel free to let me know in a constructive manner. Any offensive language won't be tolerated. Try not to be selective either. That meaning don't pick something out and use it to judge the whole piece (that sort of behaviour says more about you than it does about me). I've put a lot of effort into this piece and tried to get it done as quickly as I possibly could. It's not perfect. But I know for a fact that it's relatively more insightful than the average money-hungry journalist. Allow me to review the nightmare (or to be more accurate, night terror) that was the 2018 season of the Carlton Football Club.

Warning: I do raise some concerns and provide some thoughts that may or may not be seen as controversial. There is no offensive language about anyone nor is there any directed at anyone. If so, none is intended. This was typed up fairly quickly. If anything comes across as inappropriate, I'll be sure to rephrase it better.

CARLTON FOOTBALL CLUB: THE SEASON TO FORGET
http://its-the-self-that-matters.blogspot.com/2018/08/carlton-football-club-season-to-forget.html

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Here is the final chart of the 2018 season.
*Feel free to inform me of any mistakes.
NOTE: If anybody knows what was specifically the case with either Pickett or Shaw in the last round, then do share.
I will post this again in the Injury thread, but not as a full image.

2018 Carlton Season Tracker (FINAL CHART).jpg


This thread is primarily to discuss whatever positives we can find and what needs to be worked on during the off-season and preseason going into next year.

I will also provide another couple of charts in a different post shortly. Will to provide some thoughts on certain players. I've put a lot of hard work into making these things so please don't disregard my efforts. I am considering to continue doing this next year.

I'm sure we can dig deep and find something positive or worthy of discussion about 2018 while the Carlton-less finals take place.
 
Last edited:

The Blueseum

History of the Carlton Football Club
Jul 26, 2007
781
1,428
Princes Park
AFL Club
Carlton
I've put a lot of hard work into making these things so please don't disregard my efforts. I am considering to continue doing this next year.

Mate, your work is appreciated.

But you will not feel like it is.

As someone who in the long dark internet past posted lots of information rich content you will find very few replies, and very few likes. Sadly it is just the way things are with this sort of content.

Your injury infographic is one of the best things I have ever seen on a footy forum in 15 years.

We might not be great in numbers or loud of voice, but there are a lot of bluebaggers out there who love your content 1000% more than the slush of puns, nonsensical blathering and inside jokes that make up most footy forums.
 

TeeJay Blue

Norm Smith Medallist
Feb 11, 2015
5,028
8,285
AFL Club
Carlton
Mate, your work is appreciated.

But you will not feel like it is.

As someone who in the long dark internet past posted lots of information rich content you will find very few replies, and very few likes. Sadly it is just the way things are with this sort of content.

Your injury infographic is one of the best things I have ever seen on a footy forum in 15 years.

We might not be great in numbers or loud of voice, but there are a lot of bluebaggers out there who love your content 1000% more than the slush of puns, nonsensical blathering and inside jokes that make up most footy forums.

Mate, I don't care for likes (there nice to have, but mean little). It isn't a popularity contest for me. What I believe in is that hard work leads to reward. My reward is simply acknowledgement. Knowing that people appreciate you for what you give to them. I mainly like to be a giver and not a taker.

You replying is just as fine. And I'm grateful for your praise. I'm well aware this might not be a popular thread (and it doesn't have to be). Most of my threads aren't anyway. That's why I create very few of them (only when I feel like something needs to be discussed).
 

PrinceCharles

Norm Smith Medallist
Oct 18, 2016
5,068
9,794
AFL Club
Carlton
Didn't see a review for this season posted up. So I decided to be responsible for that. I understand why nobody did though. I mean after all, it is the club's worst season since Federation began.

But even in the darkest of times, shines the faintest of lights. We saw brilliant patches from the likes of Paddy Dow, Harry McKay and Lochie O'Brien. Charlie Curnow and Zac Fisher took the next step in their development. Patrick Cripps broke new records. Many stars signed on, believing in the process. A win against * was nothing short of sweet, especially when it costed them an opportunity to play finals. The win against Gold Coast showed how united the boys were, especially when everybody came over to congratulate the goal-kickers. Sam Docherty was a sight for sore eyes on the bench, playing a coaching role that will all but keep him as a possible contender for captaincy (although I do encourage the idea of him and Cripps sharing it).

There were, many forgettable moments during the year and I won't deny that I got caught up in the emotion of them. We broke a lot of records for all the wrong things, but I know for sure that things are eventually going to turn around sooner or later. Of course O'm not going to say that things can't get worse, because I did three years ago. Look what happened! But it is a cycle. It's irregular, but it's cyclical. All teams will have their good years and their bad years. We won't stay terrible forever. The real question is whether we will achieve what we are aiming for?

I decided to post all my results and pieces of information here rather than scatter them around the place. It's just makes it all look neater.
I'll start of by posting a review piece from my blog. But before you read it, I remind you of this paragraph I extracted from it. Take it into account as it is quite important:



Warning: I do raise some concerns and provide some thoughts that may or may not be seen as controversial. There is no offensive language about anyone nor is there any directed at anyone. If so, none is intended. This was typed up fairly quickly. If anything comes across as inappropriate, I'll be sure to rephrase it better.

CARLTON FOOTBALL CLUB: THE SEASON TO FORGET
http://its-the-self-that-matters.blogspot.com/2018/08/carlton-football-club-season-to-forget.html

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Here is the final chart of the 2018 season.
*Feel free to inform me of any mistakes.
NOTE: If anybody knows what was specifically the case with either Pickett or Shaw in the last round, then do share.
I will post this again in the Injury thread, but not as a full image.

View attachment 550034

This thread is primarily to discuss whatever positives we can find and what needs to be worked on during the off-season and preseason going into next year.

I will also provide another couple of charts in a different post shortly. Will to provide some thoughts on certain players. I've put a lot of hard work into making these things so please don't disregard my efforts. I am considering to continue doing this next year.

I'm sure we can dig deep and find something positive or worthy of discussion about 2018 while the Carlton-less finals take place.
Love the effort you put in mate, much appreciated. Please continue.
 
Appreciate the injury graphic. I've been planning to use the info for another thread but haven't decided yet. More to the point, I have to find the time to do it justice. Thanks for your work NBTJ35.
 

TeeJay Blue

Norm Smith Medallist
Feb 11, 2015
5,028
8,285
AFL Club
Carlton
Appreciate the injury graphic. I've been planning to use the info for another thread but haven't decided yet. More to the point, I have to find the time to do it justice. Thanks for your work NBTJ35.

By all means, feel free to use it. It's there for a reason. I have no control anyway (you have more than me, :laughing:).

Some posters have already used earlier updates of the chart. I just chose to be a smart**** and reminded them of who to thank.
 
Nov 13, 2015
46,398
133,570
In Transit
AFL Club
Carlton
Didn't see a review for this season posted up. So I decided to be responsible for that. I understand why nobody did though. I mean after all, it is the club's worst season since Federation began.

But even in the darkest of times, shines the faintest of lights. We saw brilliant patches from the likes of Paddy Dow, Harry McKay and Lochie O'Brien. Charlie Curnow and Zac Fisher took the next step in their development. Patrick Cripps broke new records. Many stars signed on, believing in the process. A win against * was nothing short of sweet, especially when it costed them an opportunity to play finals. The win against Gold Coast showed how united the boys were, especially when everybody came over to congratulate the goal-kickers. Sam Docherty was a sight for sore eyes on the bench, playing a coaching role that will all but keep him as a possible contender for captaincy (although I do encourage the idea of him and Cripps sharing it).

There were, many forgettable moments during the year and I won't deny that I got caught up in the emotion of them. We broke a lot of records for all the wrong things, but I know for sure that things are eventually going to turn around sooner or later. Of course I'm not going to say that things can't get worse, because I did three years ago. Look what happened! But it is a cycle. It's irregular, but it's cyclical. All teams will have their good years and their bad years. We won't stay terrible forever. The real question is whether we will achieve what we are aiming for?

I decided to post all my results and pieces of information here rather than scatter them around the place. It's just makes it all look neater.
I'll start of by posting a review piece from my blog. But before you read it, I remind you of this paragraph I extracted from it. Take it into account as it is quite important:



Warning: I do raise some concerns and provide some thoughts that may or may not be seen as controversial. There is no offensive language about anyone nor is there any directed at anyone. If so, none is intended. This was typed up fairly quickly. If anything comes across as inappropriate, I'll be sure to rephrase it better.

CARLTON FOOTBALL CLUB: THE SEASON TO FORGET
http://its-the-self-that-matters.blogspot.com/2018/08/carlton-football-club-season-to-forget.html

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Here is the final chart of the 2018 season.
*Feel free to inform me of any mistakes.
NOTE: If anybody knows what was specifically the case with either Pickett or Shaw in the last round, then do share.
I will post this again in the Injury thread, but not as a full image.

View attachment 550034

This thread is primarily to discuss whatever positives we can find and what needs to be worked on during the off-season and preseason going into next year.

I will also provide another couple of charts in a different post shortly. Will to provide some thoughts on certain players. I've put a lot of hard work into making these things so please don't disregard my efforts. I am considering to continue doing this next year.

I'm sure we can dig deep and find something positive or worthy of discussion about 2018 while the Carlton-less finals take place.

Great work NBTJ35, I hope you continue to provide the information you do.

Going into next year, would it be possible to add a column for in-game injury? With say the qtr and time when the player went off?
 
Can you please send the graphic to the morons in the media that acknowledge every team has had injuries except us. Might need to redo it in crayon for some of them to understand.
 
Can you please send the graphic to the morons in the media that acknowledge every team has had injuries except us. Might need to redo it in crayon for some of them to understand.
And supply a talking book.

Thank you for another season of colourful stats @NavyBlueTJ. Appreciate this reporting and analysis for both aflm and aflw. Grazie
 
Aug 30, 2017
6,190
20,818
Melbourne
AFL Club
Carlton
Didn't see a review for this season posted up. So I decided to be responsible for that. I understand why nobody did though. I mean after all, it is the club's worst season since Federation began.

But even in the darkest of times, shines the faintest of lights. We saw brilliant patches from the likes of Paddy Dow, Harry McKay and Lochie O'Brien. Charlie Curnow and Zac Fisher took the next step in their development. Patrick Cripps broke new records. Many stars signed on, believing in the process. A win against * was nothing short of sweet, especially when it costed them an opportunity to play finals. The win against Gold Coast showed how united the boys were, especially when everybody came over to congratulate the goal-kickers. Sam Docherty was a sight for sore eyes on the bench, playing a coaching role that will all but keep him as a possible contender for captaincy (although I do encourage the idea of him and Cripps sharing it).

There were, many forgettable moments during the year and I won't deny that I got caught up in the emotion of them. We broke a lot of records for all the wrong things, but I know for sure that things are eventually going to turn around sooner or later. Of course I'm not going to say that things can't get worse, because I did three years ago. Look what happened! But it is a cycle. It's irregular, but it's cyclical. All teams will have their good years and their bad years. We won't stay terrible forever. The real question is whether we will achieve what we are aiming for?

I decided to post all my results and pieces of information here rather than scatter them around the place. It's just makes it all look neater.
I'll start of by posting a review piece from my blog. But before you read it, I remind you of this paragraph I extracted from it. Take it into account as it is quite important:



Warning: I do raise some concerns and provide some thoughts that may or may not be seen as controversial. There is no offensive language about anyone nor is there any directed at anyone. If so, none is intended. This was typed up fairly quickly. If anything comes across as inappropriate, I'll be sure to rephrase it better.

CARLTON FOOTBALL CLUB: THE SEASON TO FORGET
http://its-the-self-that-matters.blogspot.com/2018/08/carlton-football-club-season-to-forget.html

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Here is the final chart of the 2018 season.
*Feel free to inform me of any mistakes.
NOTE: If anybody knows what was specifically the case with either Pickett or Shaw in the last round, then do share.
I will post this again in the Injury thread, but not as a full image.

View attachment 550034

This thread is primarily to discuss whatever positives we can find and what needs to be worked on during the off-season and preseason going into next year.

I will also provide another couple of charts in a different post shortly. Will to provide some thoughts on certain players. I've put a lot of hard work into making these things so please don't disregard my efforts. I am considering to continue doing this next year.

I'm sure we can dig deep and find something positive or worthy of discussion about 2018 while the Carlton-less finals take place.


Great work, thanks. It's been good to track it across the year too... well, not always good considering our run with injuries this year... but you get the idea.

One thought, could you perhaps add a 'total available' row at the bottom? Showing who of the 45 on our list wasn't injured or suspended (or a late out) each week.

Love your work, NBTJ35.
 

TeeJay Blue

Norm Smith Medallist
Feb 11, 2015
5,028
8,285
AFL Club
Carlton
Great work NBTJ35, I hope you continue to provide the information you do.

Going into next year, would it be possible to add a column for in-game injury? With say the qtr and time when the player went off?

That I'm not so sure about. I have difficulty keeping track of a lot of things. Perhaps I will make a separate visual to specify the injuries and when they occurred.

Can you please send the graphic to the morons in the media that acknowledge every team has had injuries except us. Might need to redo it in crayon for some of them to understand.

They just don't rate our list, because they have barely seen it. Little do they know that it's more damaging for a team like us to have the injuries we've had compared to the top teams.

Great work, thanks. It's been good to track it across the year too... well, not always good considering our run with injuries this year... but you get the idea.

One thought, could you perhaps add a 'total available' row at the bottom? Showing who of the 45 on our list wasn't injured or suspended (or a late out) each week.

Love your work, NBTJ35.

I usually just count the number of red and purple cells in each column. We average around 11 players unavailable weekly. Probably could have gone up to twelve.
 
One thought, could you perhaps add a 'total available' row at the bottom? Showing who of the 45 on our list wasn't injured or suspended (or a late out) each week.

Love your work, NBTJ35.

+1 this

Plus a column at the end showing how many weeks each player was available for selection.
 

drunkill

Club Legend
May 16, 2017
1,484
4,229
AFL Club
Carlton
I will post this again in the Injury thread, but not as a full image.

View attachment 550034
'Crunching' these numbers result in:
  • 248 total games lost through injury or late withdrawals across our entire playing list for the 2018 season
  • An additional 22 injuries sustained during H&A games (but no percentage of gametime lost due to those individual injuries)
  • 19 preseason games lost across the two JLT preseason games and single AFLX event, with 3 additional injuries sustained during those events (Kreuzer, Garlett, Cunningham)
  • For a total of 292 games lost or impacted due to player injuries, either total loss of matches or game time impacted
  • Ignoring injuries sustained during VFL matches but including entire matches lost due to those injuries the following weeks (if any)
  • 4 additional games lost due to player suspension: 296 total
 

sosos

Premiership Player
Apr 5, 2007
4,719
11,647
Melbourne
AFL Club
Carlton
Can't disagree with much. Maybe the "training them like it's a boot camp" bit.....that would see good young players leave in my opinion.

But I love the "attack" mantra, and the focus on skills. Mantras I would add are "play on at all times (except when the team needs to stem an opposition run on)", ""never flood" and "two way running".

Agree with others saying good job.
 

TeeJay Blue

Norm Smith Medallist
Feb 11, 2015
5,028
8,285
AFL Club
Carlton
Can't disagree with much. Maybe the "training them like it's a boot camp" bit.....that would see good young players leave in my opinion.

But I love the "attack" mantra, and the focus on skills. Mantras I would add are "play on at all times (except when the team needs to stem an opposition run on)", ""never flood" and "two way running".

Agree with others saying good job.

That did cross my mind. But I came to believe that teamwork and strong relationships with the fellow players and coaches could prevent that from being the case. Perhaps I may have been a little extreme. But it's hard to be lenient with anyone after the team has reached so many lows such as the ones seen this year.

I look at the defensive game plan Bolton walked in with and the tweaks he tried making to it before this season began. The whole thing doesn't work. I honestly can't find any significant positives with it and everyone hates it. I want goals. Who's to say you can't teach kids how to defend with an offensive game plan?

I just worry that if the coach doesn't change it soon, then the kids will never adapt to the change in the way we want them to (if we wait longer). We're not Melbourne and Paul Roos here. We're our own club with our own problems. We require different conditioning.
 
Last edited:
Mate, your work is appreciated.

But you will not feel like it is.

As someone who in the long dark internet past posted lots of information rich content you will find very few replies, and very few likes. Sadly it is just the way things are with this sort of content.

Your injury infographic is one of the best things I have ever seen on a footy forum in 15 years.

We might not be great in numbers or loud of voice, but there are a lot of bluebaggers out there who love your content 1000% more than the slush of puns, nonsensical blathering and inside jokes that make up most footy forums.
footy forums would be very dry places if they only ran facts and figures and stats and numbers - your own site gets pretty fair support from me and others around here - you might want to consider a complex, interesting novel has far better readability than a dull dictionary........
 

jd2010

Well done boys. Good process, carry on
Feb 1, 2010
38,572
19,636
AFL Club
Carlton
Other Teams
Tottenham Hotspur, Brentford FC
I wanted to do a bit of a review of the list this thread is as good a place to start. 7 list changes + 1 potential trade. Does that bring up the half-century for list turnover for SOS?


1. JSOS: 6/10. Showed signs at times in his 15 games but not enough to be certain he is a 100+ game player

2. Dow: 7.5/10. Started slowly but then started to look comfortable out there and you could see that he is going to be very special

3. Murph: 3/10. Glad to see him stay a one club man but his body let him down badly and managed just 13 games. Probably only 6 good ones in the 13

4. LOB: 7/10. A month ago this would have been 0.5-1 lower but he really started to show that he will be player at the back end.

5. SPS: 6.5/10. Gets the extra 0.5 for managing to be one of few to play every game. Upped his stats in the 2nd half of the year after a poor start. Needs to hit the scoreboard more often.

6. Simmo: 7/10. You know what you're going to get with him every year. Started poorly in the first couple (GC especially) but it was just a blip and not a sign of decline.

7. Kennedy: 5/10. Injury really hurt him and you could see it massively that he looked slow and not able to cover the ground in some games. In the ones where he did get around ok he looked very good at times.

8. Kruezer: 5/10. Similar to above after a career best year it really hurt us massively.

9. Cripps: 9/10. What a beast! Doesn't get the 10/10 due to just 11.15. Needs that to be 16.10 at a minimum (guessing there was a few that did not score too)

10. McKay: 7.5/10. He just knows where the goals are the big fella. Has some wheels on him too. Most excited about what he could become.

11. Kerridge: 2/10 (delist). Was okay when called upon but also butchered it and was a bit lazy with some of his running back too.

12. TDK: 6/10. Too early to tell but showed signs in the VFL and in his debut

13. Lamb: 5.5/10. Found a bit more focus playing down back and I think with some good coaching could be a useful small defender. Needs to have a task to do otherwise he doesn’t add much at all.

14. Jones: 5/10. Awfully exposed all year this year whenever we tried to play in a zone. Think Marchbank and Weitering will go past him soon enough. Wouldn’t be against him being a backup ruck forward while TDK develops.

15. Docherty: N/A

16. Lang: 4/10. Great game against the Suns but absolutely awful for the rest of the year. Hopefully that’s due to injury and not what we are going to get with him long-term.

17. Rowe: 4/10. Does his best but unfortunately that’s starting to not be enough at this level.

18. Mullett: 2/10 (delist). Got a decent boot on him but that’s about it. Squad filler.

19. Schumacher: 5/10. Debut year and showed some good signs at VFL level. Surprised/disappointed he didn’t get his senior debut.

20. Plowman: 5/10. Real disappointing year on field for him after a good 2017. And then injury hit to add injury to it all. Not sure if he was playing injured early on but he was a shell of the player & looked very short of confidence.

21. Garlett: 4/10. Worth the punt with the late pick but 5 goals and an average of 11 touches isn’t enough. Give him 12 more months as the talent is there.

22. Marchbank: 6/10. End of the season was better than the score suggests but he was very poor at times too. Decision making & skills continue to be an issue

23. Weitering: 7.5/10. Very solid end to the season and played with authority and confidence. Got a good feeling for him going forward after a few question marks early-mid season. Confidence in his own body seems to be the big thing he needs to have and that will come

24. O’Shea: 2/10 (delist). Unfortunately he was the scapegoat for our injury problems, being thrown in a lot more than anyone ever imagined. Worth the spot on the list to promote our link with the Northern Blues but he is a very good VFL player and will go back there and prove that.

25. Fisher: 8.5/10. Our best performed young player who came on leaps and bounds. Up to an average of roughly 20 touches a game. One of few players we’ve got that I can see being a 30+ touch getter.

26. Macreadie: 4/10. Injury riddled year. Hopefully we can get his body right as he’ll need to come in a bit more with Rowe potentially gone and ASOS gone.

27. Lobbe: 6/10. Very solid end to the season.

28. Cuningham: 3/10. If Fisher was our best youngster this guy is our biggest concern. I really rate him but he must take steps forward in 2019 otherwise he could end up elsewhere. Has so much potential just needs to get his body right and force himself into our ordinary midfield group, it really shouldn’t be too much to expect him to be our 5th option running through the middle.

29. Polson: 5/10. I really want him to make it but another one with a big 2019 coming up. Needs to find the footy. Can’t have games where he gets under 10 possessions. Great pressure and did show a bit in the Hawks game, need it more often and for longer. I think he can make it.

30. C.Curnow: 8/10. He is really coming along nicely. I don’t agree with the noises from the next Kouta & move him into midfield crowd. He is the next Charlie Curnow, modern day key forward. 34 goals at 21 in a very bad team is a great feat. We need him and Mckay + TDK/Kerr to develop a offensive unit and our midfield to know how to use them.

31. Williamson: N/A

32. Graham: 2/10 (delist). Feel for the bloke as the fans wrongly get on his back expecting him to do more than he is capable at times, but the reason for that is stupid mistakes (that snap against Freo when he had time).

33. Pickett: 4.5/10. Not entirely his fault for the rating due to injury but he didn’t show enough when back which is odd considering it was an arm injury which shouldn’t impact running right? Has tricks & pace which not many others on our list have.

34. Phillips: 4/10. More than serviceable when called upon but his body let him down.

35. E.Curnow: 6.5/10. Fell away a bit towards the end of the year, seems like a great clubman and loves the club. Is he in the leadership group? If not he should be he spoke so well on a few programs this year. Disposal is always going to be hit and miss but endeavour never is. #1 (perhaps only) shutdown man.

36. Kerr: 5/10. Good to see him debut this year. Showed signs but is still very early days.

37. Shaw: 3/10 (potentially delist). I didn’t mind his two games in the seniors. Would be the one out of Kerridge, Mullett & himself that I’d keep. If we need the extra spot then he goes.

38. Byrne: 6/10. Personally I didn’t see it with this guy, but at the end of the year I’m starting to think maybe he might make it.

39. Thomas: 7/10. Good season from him back there in defence. Happy for him after he did the right thing with his contract. Hoping to see him again in 2019, with Docherty back maybe one of the old fellas could spend time forward?

40. JGM: 2/10 (delist). Hasn’t looked close to a debut as a KPD and then moved forward at the end of the year in the twos. 3rd year surely we end move him on?

41. Casboult: 2/10 (trade). Our only trade option and we have to take pretty much whatever we can for him. Injury didn’t help but 12 goals from 10 games with 4 marks per game is appalling. We’ve got 4 young forwards who have gone past him + Jones and others who can swing down + the game is moving more to agile forwards. If he doesn’t get us a 3rd or 4th round pick he should only be played out of necessity.

42. LeBous: 2.5/10 (re-rookie). Got close to a call up before injury hit him. Would give him another shot due to how highly rated he was before being picked up.

44. ASOS: N/A (retired)

45. McDaid: N/A. Too early in his crossover to talk about

46. Wright: 3/10. Drop off from 2017 was poor. Only 28 so hopefully it was just a blip and he was playing under duress. Played like a 30+ year old who’d gone on one too many years but that’s obviously not the case.
 
1. People who criticise Brown's criticism of Bolton playing 2-3 forwards V 6 last week - are missing the fact that Bolton has been employing this nonsense all year to little positive effect - something that has been pointed out by some posters since the first few games btw.

2. Midfield has been an utter disaster - not worse only because Carlton has access to the bloke with the biggest heart in AFL in Cripps. Carlton midfield is best summed up as the softest tacklers worst fumblers and dumbest users of teh ball in AFL.

3. Really poor coaching effort from coaching squad - really poor.

SOS has to find 3-4 midfielders and Bolton has to find competent coaching assistance - especially match day otherwise 2019 will be rinse and repeat and Club can kiss rebuild under this regime goodbye.

I'm confident the Club knows all this and a lot will be done to remedy glaring fails from here on. If it happens Carlton can 'rocket' to genuine on the rise middling Club status in 2019.
 

TeeJay Blue

Norm Smith Medallist
Feb 11, 2015
5,028
8,285
AFL Club
Carlton
:star::star::star::star::star:
Patrick Cripps
The only player to really stand out this year. Should be AA, BNF and top 10 in the Brownlow. Was consistent but really started to blitz the rest of his teammates after the bye. Finished with 6 best on grounds and never had a score below 9.

:star::star::star::star:
Ed Curnow, Zac Fisher, Matthew Lobbe, Kade Simpson, Dale Thomas
- Ed was making a strong case for the best and fairest in the first half of the year. That was until he got suspended for touching an umpire. Ever since, he had been mentally worn down. Up yours protesters.
- Fisher went beyond our expectations and surprised many with his contested work and fast play. Lobbe severely underappreciated here. Filled the ruck role beautifully. You couldn't ask for anything more there.
- No surprises with Simmo. Thomas was super consistent and his efforts should see him with another year at the club.

:star::star::star:
Ciaran Byrne, Charlie Curnow, Paddy Dow, Jed Lamb, Harry McKay, Marc Murphy, Lochie O'Brien, Sam Petrevski-Seton
- The last few games had Byrne providing what we were long looking for; the pace and pressure off half back. Bits of play that involve him usually see his non-stop effort to push forward and place further weight on the opponent's backline. Strong finish to the year. Hopefully he can keep on the park though.
- Curnow had some really 'meh!' games. some really 'good' games and there were the odd one or two 'brilliant' games. Leads up the ground and stresses out his opponent. With more attack and better delivery, he could seriously be a threat to the rest of the competition.
- Dow couldn't dish up what we hope for coming into the season, but he definitely showed an awful lot of promise coming out. His dash and evasiveness is something to admire.
- Lamb not as bad as people think. Been somewhat serviceable. McKay arguably a 3.5. Lifted above his weight and delivered what a tall forward usually does on many occssions
- Murphy provided his usual work rate. But leadership lacking and he didn't contest as much as he should've. SPS in a similar boat. Needs to get his hands dirty.
- O'Brien very patchy but has had his good games. Probably needs to look to Simmo and defense coach for more polish, and could miss out on the best 22 next year. However I am bullish about this kid's ceiling.

:star::star:
Tom De Koning, Jarrod Garlett, Liam Jones, Patrick Kerr, Sam Kerridge, Matthew Kennedy, Matthew Kreuzer, Darcy Lang, Caleb Marchbank, Lachie Plowman, Sam Rowe, Jacob Weitering, Matthew Wright
- Debut match for De Koning was intriguing. Does have a bit of work to do. Perhaps bulk up a little more. Garlett needs to lift his intensity, but I suppose his shoulder prevented him from doing that (hence the surgery).
- Jones was a shadow of his 2017 self. Got found out one to many times. Was leaving his man out the back far to often and always left a 5+ metre gap between him and his opponent. Needs to be fixed.
- Kerr looks more likely to be depth at the moment. Nothing really seen as threatening for regular game time with Carlton. Kerridge a solid contributor, but his kicking and decision-making is absolutely woeful.
- Kennedy needs a clean run and a fitter ankle before I can really see where he sits with the team. Things weren't looking so nice for him this year. It just wasn't Kreuzer's year either. Form far from that of last year and groin and heart problems interfered too frequently.
- Lang lacked commitment. Look far too disinterested most times. Only one really decent performance and that was it.
- Marchbank had his moment toward the end of the season, but needs a nice flow of games and the right support. His best is very valuable. Plowman a solid contributor and persistent performer. But probably didn't reach the require level this year and went down rather early with a medial strain.
- Rowe very inconsistent and is edging towards losing his spot. Weitering great contested marking, but really needs to work on his awareness. Chased down too many times for my liking.
- Wright a really bad year compared to his previous two. The week's rest did him a little favour but he continued to struggle.

:star:
Levi Casboult, David Cuningham, Nick Graham, Aaron Mullett, Cameron O'Shea, Andrew Phillips, Jarrod Pickett, Cameron Polson, Matthew Shaw, Jack Silvagni
- Levi's body of work is too small now when compared with McKay's and Curnow's. Definitely his last year or two.Been a serviceable player though.
- Cuningham just didn't have the year he wanted. Low impact at first, then struck down by a troublesome hammy.
- Graham can't cover for anybody and can't seem to replicate his VFL work at AFL level. Been the case for the past 3 years. His bags are packed.
- Mullett a disappointment. Expected to temporarily fill a role and couldn't even fill half of it. O'Shea a bigger disappointment. For a defender, his ball-use was WAY below the standard required from a key defender.
- Phillips continues to break down easy and now seems to have fallen behind Lobbe for the moment. Pickett also with a horrible run of injuries. Can't seem to overcome them mentally.
- Polson a strong pressure applier but needs to do more. 5-possession games at 20% efficiency is a big no-no. Even games without a tackle shouldn't be accepted, especially given his role. Has to use his performance against Adelaide as the personal standard. Anything close to it is fine, but anything less than that should not be encouraged. Averaged -7 points in his 12 games (the worst of any player). That's hideous to look at. Hope he continues to develop and avoid replicating that average.
- Can't really judge Shaw but he didn't seem to make much of a difference.
- Silvagni needs one role and needs to stick with it. Much like Weitering, any flip-flopping with confuse him and see him struggle to earn a regular spot in the line-up. He is far too patchy and his best work is like a quick flash on the screen.
 
Last edited:
Mar 19, 2014
3,535
7,938
AFL Club
Carlton
Other Teams
Denver Broncos
They just don't rate our list, because they have barely seen it. Little do they know that it's more damaging for a team like us to have the injuries we've had compared to the top teams.

Love the injury graphics, a picture paints a thousand words.

Your statement re injuries rings so true, a young side can ill afford to have injuries especially to key players as at this stage we do not have the depth to cover them. Our team changed weekly due to injuries which really killed any cohesion or momentum that we could muster.
 
Back