A season can still be saved at 1-2, even 0-3, writes Mick Malthouse

CARLTON needs an incredible run to make the finals from here but Mick Malthouse knows it can be done — because he did exactly that at Footscray coach in the 1980s. A how-to guide for climbing off the canvas.

Nathan Buckley can still guide the Magpies to finals. Picture: AAP

MANAGING expectations is one thing. Living up to expectations is another thing.

Already, by just Round 3, time is running out for some clubs, clubs who probably thought they would begin better.

Now the noise starts, from outside and even inside, and expectations are questioned.

Carlton is zip and three. Brisbane, too.

The Western Bulldogs could be the same by the end of the round, with an even poorer percentage.

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The Swans started last season 0-6 and should have been down for the count.

But Sydney is season-hardened and therefore knew how to claw its way back into contention.

You see, it’s not necessarily about changing the expectations, it’s about curtailing the thoughts and emotions that go with those expectations.

It’s having the ability to change the thought processes surrounding the season and silencing the white noise. Easier said than done.

Marc Murphy’s Carlton has slumped to 0-3 after losing to Collingwood on Friday night. Picture: AAP

In 1987 Footscray lost the first three games of the season by a total of 42 goals.

In Round 4 we faced reigning premiers Hawthorn.

We didn’t look beyond that one game.

With no end point, we simply worked to a plan to be competitive.

It was a young team, so the kids had enough enthusiasm to keep spirits up.

I sacrificed my free running midfielder, Tony McGuinness, to tag John Platten (who went on to win the Brownlow) and he completely destroyed him.

We persisted, and we won by 41 points.

Still we didn’t look ahead. It’s an age-old cliché, but we really did play week to week, one game at a time.

Every match was an opportunity to play the best football we could.

We missed out on finals by half a game which was remarkable.

It is by far one of the most enjoyable seasons I ever coached, for the sheer will to win that was displayed each and every week.

Adam Treloar and Steele Sidebottom helped Collingwood notched its first win of the season. Picture: AAP

In 2002, Collingwood lost to Carlton in Round 3, to be 1-2, after finishing ninth the season before.

We weren’t considered a chance and I have a strong feeling I was on the verge of being sacked then.

Once again, knowing that the season is too big and broad to get caught up in negative hype, we went back to a week-to-week process.

We picked teams on merit and experimentation. We restructured the side for enthusiasm and stayed loyal to each other.

One win became two wins, which became three, then four, then five wins in a row.

We debuted Jason Cloke and Mark McGough, and Scott Cummings (drafted from West Coast) played some handy footy in the forward line.

We put our heads down and didn’t think about finals until we were competing in them.

In the end, a team that, on paper, shouldn’t have made the Grand Final, played to its utmost ability every week, and lost to the giants of the competition, Brisbane, by just nine points.

To win our first premiership with West Coast in 1992, we came together as a group to address our lack of hunger and effort after a big loss to ladder-dweller Fitzroy, that had us at two wins, a draw, and three losses. All after a grand final defeat in 1991.

We broke the season down instead of carrying the pressure to make finals again, and reignited the team’s enthusiasm and appetite for winning.

We lost just three games for the remainder of the season.

West Coast overcame a slow start in 1992 to win the premiership.

So where do Collingwood and Carlton stand now, in Round 3 of 2018?

For the Blues to make the eight they have to win 12 of the next 19 games, at least, to do it.

Tough, but not impossible.

The Blues seem to have thrown defence out the window.

But footy is a balancing act and until that balance is achieved, they will have some moderate wins and some moderate losses and finish between ninth and 13th.

The brightest sparks for the Blues are Patrick Cripps and Charlie Curnow, who are All-Australian prospects.

The loss of Sam Docherty has hurt them, while Liam Jones, who was brilliant in defence last season, is now positioned too offensively or aggressively.

And youngsters Jacob Weitering and Jack Silvagni haven’t come on enough. So Carlton’s balance has to be tweaked.

Collingwood, some say, are gallant. But gallantry doesn’t always put a W in front of the result.

Yes they have injures, but so do other clubs, and I’m here to tell you that at the end of an unsuccessful season no one cares about or wants to hear about them.

The Pies are good enough to win games of football and compete to finish between eighth and 12th. That’s up to them.

The Bulldogs represent the biggest disappointments so far this season I think.

The Dogs look undermanned, underled, and quite frankly, not up to the fight.

What we remember of 2016 was their ferocity and strict adherence to the game plan.

That has all but evaporated.

Collingwood, under Malthouse and led by Nathan Buckley, was 1-2 in 2002 but played off in the Grand Final.

Oh for a fit Liam Picken, a heart and soul player who doesn’t know how to give up.

Today, against Essendon, they need to demonstrate that they still have a heart, and a desire to win.

Last year’s premiers, Richmond, is at 1-1 and appears to have several players reverting back to 2016 form — not overly hard, not overly accountable, not desperate enough.

Today’s game against the revitalised Hawks could be defining.

The Hawks, I thought, would be in a holding pattern this season.

But a lot of players who went missing last year are back in form, and Hawthorn is suddenly back in contention.

Aided by Tom Mitchell, Jaeger O’Meara, and Ben McEvoy in the centre, and through the leadership of Jarryd Roughead, the Hawks only need to win half of their remaining games to make the eight.

The Cats aren’t playing to their full potential, while the Gold Coast Suns — with a defensive game structure under new coach Stuart Dew — are surprising everyone.

The West Coast Eagles through some terrific recruiting and the return of Nic Naitanui are impressive.

It’s Round 3 and expectations are still being explored, but don’t write anyone off, or sign anyone in, just yet.

With 20 more weeks until finals, you can only play one game at a time.

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