Carlton Supporters Club

I don't know what to make of this.   Is this a knock on Dow's personality?      Needs to be more extroverted?

FMD, after nearly 12 weeks of being the most exciting team to watch in the competition, just one dud game against GWS and the media are all over Carlton delivering a shizen to watch slugfest!

Back to normal!

Isn’t there a rumour going around he wants to be traded? I thought maybe he doesn’t want to be At the club. Yes he’s young and I was rapt for him when he got that goal early but many contests afterwards he spectated.

This Jekyll & Hyde stuff is getting beyond a joke! The Midgets were much better than us in the 1st but wasteful... we go inside 50 a few times for an incredible return/efficiency. Then the game is ours for two qtrs and can't convert. Then we go soft between the lugholes for about 10 minutes, enough time to hand them the game, then for a short period late in the game we own the game but stuff up everything. One off? Nuh... it's what we do... did it last week as well. We had 2 good sides in struggling form on toast in consecutive weeks yet become an undisciplined rabble for just enough time to give our struggling opponents the game. How many games this year have we owned for an extended period, only to turn out being our own worst enemies when our opponents get desperate and applied the screws? Poos in pants. All between the ears... still. Where's the mental toughness?

The Good:
We led for most of the night.
Weitering.
Walsh.
Boldness, taking risks.
We saw plenty of tenacity (but more cold ruthlessness & mental focus/toughness needed).
1st qtr i50 efficiency.

The Bad:
Final qtr capitulation, or rather a 10 minute capitulation but, hey, that's all it takes to lose (though we did wrestle back control late to only lose system and composure).
Failure to capitalise on created opportunity ...big time.
Forwards failure to adapt to increased pressure from opponents/lack of creativity and playing to strengths... got too individualistic.
Casboult's form.

The Ugly:
Disposal efficiency - symptom of panicky cr@p under pressure/mental fragility. When opponents apply real pressure we become a kind of 'kick and hope' group aka lose confidence aka mental weakness aka poos in pants.
Goal kicking though it does relate to above.

To say we have improved on previous years is absolutely correct BUT we consistently and persistently repeat the same mistakes that cost us wins - how many games this year have we had a qtr or two or just a 10 minute period of total capitulation, it's become habitual, predictable, almost ingrained. It'll be a cliche soon... our regular habit of surrender for a period. What worries me the most is that it seems so damned ingrained and you just wait for it to happen in every game.

Is it 'Henny Penny Sky Is Falling?' Nuh. Our weaknesses are glaring but we need people who can really address and remove these weaknesses from our game, our players, their heads!!!! Heading in the right direction? Yep, but to repeat the previous sentence we now need people who can force and secure 'the next step' - we're ready for new blood, ruthless new blood, uncompromising new blood, not 'sentimental' new blood (I can only assume when some blokes continue to perform poorly and we allow them senior selection that the MC is too sentimental)... new blood who've come from winning environments. And that starts with some changes in 1. the coaching box (can I repeat - a coupla assistants who've come from a winning culture?) and 2. the introduction of a coupla new, experienced, successful players from a strong, winning culture.

(Reposted to here... where it should have been in the first place, doh!)

Reality check: I watched the game again and GWS were carp and turned up half baked expecting us to roll over after losing to Collingwood, they played about 20 mins of reasonable football and won the game and thats what sucked after we led all night.
They had three good players and we snatched defeat from the jaws of victory and what made it worse you could see it coming as a spectator. GWS were building with Greene leading the way and we just let it happen.
If you combine both our second halves from the last two weeks we have kicked one goal over the total period of a game, thats Mark Arceri stuff.
Leadership on the field has to get better, instead of slowing the game down and reducing momentum(Luke Hodge said same) we just continued to do the same stuff that was getting us nowhere.
Cripps and Docherty need to take more control and direct play better than they are doing....probably missing Daisy Thomas as a experienced winning voice on the field who could direct traffic and read the game better.

Unfortunately, that's all part of progress of from zero to top side. We unfortunately have to go through alot of $hit during various stages of improvement. Same in any sport. Takes alot of work and doesn't happen overnight, even more so this year when you can't train with your full team, and not train much anyway with shortened breaks between games.  This year really favored the hardened, experienced team, who have they game style set in stone.

Next year, we say that every year, "they will lift next year". I think we have peaked with this group, I cant take the next step. Probably finish the same position next year, the problems (inaccuracy and by default goalless qtrs, brain fades) still exist. I cant see how they will be fixed other than by bringing new personnel...again.

Dow is still playing U18 football, his kicking is one thing but his nous and awareness is poor and either he hasnt been coached well or he cant mentally handle the upgrade playing senior footy.
He has decent size, shape and can do the odd good piece of play like his goal vs GWS was well thought out but in general field play he becomes a novice kid like he is playing his first game.
On the wing he was cornered, ran into trouble and should have been pinged for throwing the ball but he gave up mentally in that contest, turned it over and couldnt think it through. He really needs a mentor like Chris Judd to work with if he is going to make it IMO or another club who might be able to coach him differently and make him grow up a bit quicker.
You look at Walsh and its like he is a 30 year old veteran comparing him to Dow who looks like a 1st year rookie...

We will only improve when they finally give the board the arse.