Carlton Supporters Club

It's interesting watching the VFL team with Pitto, O'Keeffe, Mirkov, Lemmey and Young on the field.  Our run and ability to cover the ground defensively doesn't seem to be compromised.

It's interesting watching the VFL team with Pitto, O'Keeffe, Mirkov, Lemmey and Young on the field.  Our run and ability to cover the ground defensively doesn't seem to be compromised.

Completely different team and team balance.

Pretty sure i've made that abundently clear that i am referring to our AFL side only. Not our VFL side, not our AFLW side. Not GWS' AFL side, or bombers AFL side or any other side.

Yes @DJC, what are you thinking, it's a completely different game on a completely different ground with different umpires and different opponents, etc. etc...

You know, the conclusions you make have to depend on each team and game, case by case, we can't expect one solution fits all, how silly of you!

1. If you are good enough, you pick a team to win and try and make the opposition defeat you. This is where we stand.

Completely different team and team balance.

Pretty sure i've made that abundently clear that i am referring to our AFL side only. Not our VFL side, not our AFLW side. Not GWS' AFL side, or bombers AFL side or any other side.

I'm not sure we're good enough...yet.
That will play out in the next few weeks.

But even the best of teams wouldn't operate solely on the above basis.
You need to pick a team that the oppositition finds hard to combat, but also you need to find a counter to the opposition weapons.
The 'rise of Cincotta' is a testament to that.

I reckon what we've seen in recent weeks is a bit of experimentation, and a bit of resting of players.
While some selections may have seemed a bit strange they're probably well thought out.
But that experimentation and managing should wind up, and the focus needs to turn towards first making the finals and then securing the best possible position.
The first shouldn't prove a huge challenge...

But lose today and our percentage is poorer than the 9th placed team and we're only a game ahead.

We are good enough.

On any given day, we can certainly match it and beat any opposition team put out there.
Are we good enough to make it certain? Not yet.
But, play to your strengths. The moment we start changing our team, weaken it, to play against the opposition is the moment we start going down hill. Some of the recent changes may be proof ot that.

re %....
We have one of (if not THE) easiest run home from here. I expect our % to take care of itself a little bit from here on out and some other teams to fall.

The ladder doesn't lie.....in our case it shows we've had games against tough opposition.

So the amount of time ruckmen spend on the bench is irrelevant unless their names are Pittonet and Tom De Koning?

Pitto’s inability to go forward and have an impact is really the only reason we don’t play two rucks.  I can see us playing De Koning and O’Keeffe if the latter continues to develop.

The ladder is not always truthful.
Some games we thought would be easy may not be the cake-walk we thought.

Of course, but you know that with or without a ladder.

Look how bad we've been over the past decade, we always managed to sneak a couple unexpected wins in there though. You expect the same this year....and every other year.

There is a difference between SHOULD win.....and actually winning.

Quite right
Now apply that same thinking to games against North Melbourne and WCE...even perhaps Collingwood in their present state.
We're just as likely to drop one to teams that are in the position we were not so long ago.
Take nothing for granted.

Just on the other point your making...
I understand that you are using it specifically to refer to our current AFL side.
My problem has always been with how it's presented as a 'fixed in time' presentation.
It's about the now.
So we shouldn't even think about options.
It makes little allowance for a changes such as players adapting, improving, developing a better communication or understanding with games together, changes in how they are used by the coaches in combination.

Tom went from a player who should be playing VFL to one of our most effective in the space of twelve months.
Pittonet has had an interrupted year.
I don't think anything can be fixed in stone....but we may need to make a firm decision in respect of the current campaign.

Binns racked up 45 in the VFL, thankfully he wasn't stuck on the bench which was full of rucks anyway!

Poor bastard Binns, might have set a VFL record and got 56 if he'd sprinted off to have a few seconds for a break!

Did Pitto set a VFL Clearance record, or is his high clearance count just proportional to time in the ruck?

Anyway, I don't understand these things, best leave it to the mathematicians.

@other teams, it works.
For us......it doesn't.