Patrick Cripps’ suspension: What does this mean for Carlton?
Following Patrick Cripps’ two-game ban for his high-hit against Brisbane’s Callum Ah Chee, questions have arisen about what that means for Carlton.
The Blues have faced injuries and suspensions of key players throughout the season and could ultimately pay the price by the end of the year, with the club boasting an 8-2 start, their best since 2001 (7-3). .
However, the temporary absences of Jacob Weitering, George Hewett, Marc Pittonet, Matt Kennedy, Harry McKay and Zac Williams have meant that Carlton has faded and they currently sit in seventh place with a 12-8 win/loss record.
With their place in the eighth in jeopardy, Michael Voss’ men have dates in the remaining rounds with Melbourne and Collingwood, with the potential of missing the final being a real possibility if they fail to book a win.
Cripps’ suspension only adds to the troubles at IKON Park as the club may face a harsh reality in the coming weeks.
With the Blues a game away from St Kilda, they must endure one of the upsets of the year in the next fortnight or face an extended holiday break.
who needs to get up
Carlton arguably has the most players in his top 22 absent through injury and now suspended, with Cripps, Kennedy and Hewett topping the long list, while defenders Nic Newman, Zac Williams and Oscar McDonald are all unavailable.
However, youngsters Sam Walsh and Adam Cerra will now be given opportunities to assert themselves in midfield, as will Will Setterfield and Paddy Dow, who are both playing for new contracts.
The next fortnight is also a good opportunity for Coleman Medal leader Charlie Curnow and McKay to show why they are the next best forward duo and are slowly taking the mantle of Geelong’s Jeremy Cameron and Tom Hawkins.
Since losing to Collingwood (Round 11), the Blues have only surpassed 100 points once, against West Coast, and average 78 points per game.
McKay has scored four goals in the last four games, including being goalless against leaders Geelong.
The next fortnight is also an opportunity for the next wave of young Carlton players to show their talent, with Zac Fisher, Matt Cottrell, Lochie O’Brien, Jack Martin and Matt Owies all challenged to join the pursuit of the blues to raise finals.
Will Carlton reach the final?
For Carlton to miss the finals, they would have to lose both games against the Demons and Pies.
Richmond is currently two points behind them and needs to win a match against Hawthorn or Essendon to move them up the ladder and push them into eighth place.
St Kilda – who are in ninth place – are a game behind the Blues and would most likely need to win the remaining games against Brisbane and Sydney. The Saints are well behind in percentage terms (101.1 percent) and depend on Premiership points.
The Western Bulldogs are two games behind Carlton and 1.8 percent behind but will face GWS and Hawthorn to round out the season.
The Dogs would need to be perfect over the next fortnight while also winning by a decent margin to skip the Blues, but that would be moot if Carlton won at least once.
If they miss September, should the year be counted as a success?
To answer this holistically, we need to consider where Carlton has been in recent years and what has changed this year.
Since reaching the finals in 2013, the Blues have not climbed higher than 11th place on the ladder, which happened in a COVID-19-ravaged 2020 season.
During this time there were also two wooden spoons (2015 and 2018).
In 2021, they finished 13th with eight wins and were desperate for change, sacking David Teague and bringing in former Lions coach and Brisbane champion Voss.
The immediate shift in playstyle and strategy was seen as the Blues bucked the trend of round one losses to the Tigers and ended the streak begun in 2013.
With the rise of Curnow as one of the game’s top scorers, playing alongside 2021 Coleman medalist McKay, Carlton began to look to the future.
The 24-year-old spoke about the 2022 campaign and would call it a success even if it didn’t mean a September action.
“I think I judge success in terms of the environment we’ve created. In the last couple of years we’ve probably had issues in that area culturally, environmentally and building a really solid game plan,” McKay said.
“Whatever happens for the rest of the year, I think that’s results-based. But for me as a player who’s been around for seven or eight years, those 12 months have been a success. Whether that comes with the final or whatever, I think we’ve taken a really big step in the right direction.”
They’ve also managed to form a strong defensive line, led by Weitering and Sam Docherty, both of whom feature alongside full-back Adam Saad in the all-Australia competition.
What do the blues need for the future?
Just time.
Carlton have a plethora of players entering the prime of their careers, with the club ranked 14th in experience (60 games average) and 11th in age (24.2 years).
They also only have one player over 30, with veteran Ed Curnow currently 32.
The team needs to grow together and continue to work on the style that Voss is trying to implement and that has largely proven itself in 2022.