Carlton Supporters Club

You can slice it anyway you want Paul.

Whatever BB's message was at half time - it failed dismally.

The players - everyone of them - was comatose at the start of Q3.

They didn't run, they missed tackles, they took the wrong option and they moved the ball incredibly slowly.

Hooray.

That's crazy. You have Docherty, Walls, Bolton, Teague, Barker, various analysts, statisticians etc., all watching the game, and you don't think that between that cast of thousands, one of them might see what the experts on here can see ? Do you think, maybe, just maybe, that whatever changes are made or not made, there may be some reasoning behind it ? That they may know a little more about the state of play than you or me ?

But no, by all means, sack the coach.

so his message was "just relax boys, we got this, got out and play like you don't care, and play like we've already won."

I'd find it hard to believe this was a directive, BUT ... how many of us had that sense of dread at half time?

The buck stops with Bolton. And I know from personal knowledge, that he's as stubborn as they come, and believes that he has a game plan which will ultimately win every game.

Problem is, he and his plan, are to frigging complicated.

He's a school teacher by trade, but thinks he's talking to Doctors of Philosophy, who probably wouldn't understand him either.

He's talking to young blokes. Keep it simple.

Make changes when necessary. Don't let Omeara get a record number of possy's before you finally tag him.

Make sure they come out firing for the third quarter.

I posted here a few weeks ago, that for all the above reasons, he's a hack as a coach.

But for me, the ULTIMATE reason was that first round against Richmond this year.

86,000 people. The boys are supposedly fitter than ever, and frankly, that last quarter today with three men down proved that Russel has got them very fit.

They had been chomping at the bit to play.

And you, Brendan Bolton, our head coach, couldn't get them wound up enough to come out and make a at least a contest of the first quarter against Richmond.

So what did we get, as a result of your failure to fire them up, 5 goals to ZERO.

Five goals to three would have been acceptable, and who knows, maybe a win would have resulted.

I frankly don't know who we can get, but anyone with half a football brain has got to be better than him.

I know the stats. I know you think we have a fab list. I would qualify that by saying we have a fab DEVELOPING list. And yes, there is a difference, and yes the difference matters.

Quit the f excuses. It's 4 wins from 38, and 1-5 in a year we should be going up the ladder. A fab list makes top 4, a fab developing list finishing top 10 with 9-10 and being at least half way to finals competitive much of year. You know it, I know it. You need to admit that rather than spin your way around it.

They're not excuses and it's not spin.

One that got away after a great start, its hard to win a game when the opposing teams best mid had 40 plus with a lot of contested wins. It wasnt rocket science that Omeara
was the man to stop and after Mitchell did the same to us last season you have to question the tactics. Ed Curnow went onto Omeara about half way through the last quarter
but the horse had bolted.
Kruezer tired and McEvoy seemed to get on top in that 3rd quarter and the Hawks won the ball out of the middle...their good experienced players also lifted, Bruest, Poppy, Shiels, Wingard, Smith all started getting the ball and we just couldnt get the ball it was that simple.

Also those two big marks the Hawks took in the backline were huge, we didnt contest properly, just had to get the ball to ground in those last 5 mins but our talls didnt compete.

Not the end of the world though and we need to hit back and beat North, we should start warm favorites and I'd be including Williamson and Stocker for Newman and Simpson who look injured.

LOL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Setterfield will come in.