Carlton’s forwardline woes compounded with injury to mercurial Eddie Betts
No Curnow. No McKay. No Betts. No wonder Carlton fans are worried about where their goals are going to come from. Could it be a high-priced 2018 recruit who is yet to fulfil his promise?
Carlton
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Blues co-captain Sam Docherty says Mitch McGovern will play in Round 1 despite a limited pre-season which saw him amass only four possessions in his only warm-up contest.
Carlton’s array of forward line riches have suddenly evaporated with Charlie Curnow and Harry McKay not ready for Round 1 and Eddie Betts now out for a month with a calf injury.
McGovern will be the only Blues forward in Thursday’s season opener to have kicked 20 goals last year, with McKay (26 goals) working back from groin issues and Betts (37 goals) hurting his calf at training.
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Carlton kicked five goals against Fremantle and 10 against Brisbane in the pre-season competition so will have to find a way to conjure a winning score.
In the clash with Brisbane Levi Casboult and McGovern were the two key forwards, with Jack Silvagni, Jack Martin, Matthew Kennedy, Michael Gibbons and Zac Fisher all spending time as small forwards.
Docherty has already been told by co-captain Patrick Cripps he will be at the coin toss in next Thursday’s season opener, ecstatic to be ready after two lost years through knee issues.
McGovern had only one effective possession in his hitout against Brisbane as he managed his game time but Docherty is confident he can still fire early against traditional Round 1 foe Richmond.
“I am not a medical expert but I think it’s been core and hip stability stuff, so we have been really cautious with him and make sure we get a full season out of him given we pushed him pretty hard last year off the back of his back injury,” he told the Herald Sun.
“What we want is Mitch to perform and feel confident on the footy field, he has played the amount of time we wanted him to on the weekend, he felt really good out there, and he should be ready to go round 1 which is great for the Carlton footy club to have him out there confident and ready.”
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McGovern lost a considerable amount of weight in a 2019 boot camp but given his lucrative contract after crossing from Adelaide will be under pressure to perform.
Docherty’s own recovery from twin ACL ruptures could not have been more seamless, the All Australian defender in excellent form against the Lions with 92 per cent kicking efficiency in the first half.
He was named co-captain along with Cripps in October 2018 then ruptured his ACL for the second time not long later.
“I have done more than I thought. I ended playing all of the Collingwood (practice game), all the Freo game and full minutes on the weekend which was a full load for an AFL game, so physically it’s more than I thought which is great for me mentally.
“I worked off a bit of rust and started to feel back to normal on the weekend which was great.
“I am really confident in the body of work I have put in over two and a half seasons to get my body right and my knee right at AFL level.
“I think just getting to Round 1 has been on my mind for a long time. We are so lucky as a footy club we get Round 1 in front of a monster crowd against Richmond,” he said.
“It is one of the more special games you get to play so my first game as official captain alongside Crippa is a moment I have been waiting for 12 months now. Crippa and I will split (the coin toss) week to week but he told me about 10 weeks ago, “You are taking Round 1”. It will be a really good moment to get through.”
Docherty is adamant the club’s patchy pre-season form is not representative of the gains made by the club over summer.
“We would have loved to take winning form into Round 1 but overarching that is getting ready for Round 1 and onwards.
“We are pretty confident with the body of work we have got in and we have minimal injuries other than the two big bodies upfront. It’s exciting times and I am really excited to get back out there.”
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