Craig McRae reveals he reached out to Michael Voss after Blues’ horrid start
Carlton and Collingwood may be fiercest of enemies bracing for one of the biggest games of the year so far, but Craig McRae has extended an olive branch to Michael Voss.
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Collingwood coach Craig McRae has revealed he reached out to his triple premiership teammate and Carlton coach Michael Voss “as a mate” on the morning after the Blues slumped to a third successive loss to start the season against the Western Bulldogs.
But McRae stressed there won’t be any further interaction this week ahead of Thursday night’s renewal of hostilities in one of footy’s longest and most intense club rivalries.
In an extensive interview with Herald Sun footy analyst Mick McGuane ahead of the round 4 MCG clash, McRae also said the Magpies were preparing for Carlton spearhead Harry McKay to make his return after missing the past two matches for personal reasons, suggesting Billy Frampton is the likely replacement for Reef McInnes, who suffered an ACL injury in Round 2.
And he detailed how a text message from former Pies president Eddie McGuire in his first season as coach steeled him for the enormity of Collingwood-Carlton clashes.
“I actually texted (Voss) on Saturday morning,” McRae said. “I just watched the game (against the Bulldogs) and watched him closely as a mate.”
“This is a unique job … There are only 17 others doing the same crazy job.
“I understand what you have to navigate through at times … I reached out to him to see if he was OK. (But) this is probably not the week to catch up.”
The pair also spoke briefly at Monday’s Peter Mac Cup Breakfast, with both clubs playing this week to take a stand against cancer and support the groundbreaking research at Peter Mac.
It’s the longest running charity match in AFL history.
McRae and Voss played in three successive flags with the Brisbane Lions from 2001 to 2003, and have always maintained a close relationship, despite coaching against each other in recent years.
He has a 5-1 record over Voss since 2022 but is not taking the Blues lightly this week, saying one of the first things he learned about the rivalry is that ladder positions never really count.
“I think there is a level of respect for what comes with the job (of coaching in the AFL) if you don’t perform,” McRae said.
“We’re in the performance industry. We all realise that, but there is a level of care too.
“We were zip and three last year and it comes really quick because this game is bloody hard.
“We like to live in process. If they (Carlton) are living in process, their numbers look pretty good; if they are looking at the ladder, then it’s a different feeling.”
Collingwood is planning for McKay to make his return alongside Charlie Curnow this week after playing in a VFL practice match on the weekend.
“I just saw him (McKay) at the (Peter Mac) breakfast, I assume that is a good sign (for the Blues that he could return),” he said. “We anticipate he does (play). We will plan for him.”
Asked if McInnes’ injury paved the way for Frampton’s AFL return, McRae said: “I think so … I think he is going to be at least talked about.”
He said he had stark initiation for what Collingwood and Carlton matches meant to the participants and the fans just moments after upsetting Fremantle in a clash in Perth in his first season as coach in 2022.
“It hit me right in the face in my first year that I was coaching,” he said.
“We had just beaten Fremantle … we had lost three games in a row and I was in my first year (which was) heavy.
‘I was like ‘how do we fight out of this struggle?’ We went to Perth and no one gave us a chance and we had a gutsy win. I was like, ‘Now we might gain some momentum.
“We had just sung the song and I picked up the phone and it was Eddie (McGuire). He was like ‘Well, that was nice, but next week is the one that matters’.
“If you speak to anyone that is Collingwood or anyone that is Carlton, this game means more. There are four points (for games) and then there is this game.
“We realised that and we have always embraced that. I always put the highlights up and the history. At one stage two years ago, we were on exactly the same tally of wins.
“We have had a lot of enormous games. We’ve had a great ding-dong battle in the last few years.
“You know they (Carlton) are going to turn up, you know there is going to be a s— fight and you bring your best version and struggle through it.”
The Magpies currently lead the win-loss ledger over the Blues with 133 wins, four draws and 129 losses from their 266 matches.
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