AFL 2022: Michael Voss has called on a mindfulness mastermind to distance Carlton’s decade of doom

How have the Blues started afresh with a new attitude? Michael Voss has called in a mental health guru to boost team bonding and to leave the ghosts of past failures at Ikon Park behind.

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA – APRIL 03: Sam Walsh of the Blues and Michael Voss, Senior Coach of the Blues celebrate during the 2022 AFL Round 03 match between the Carlton Blues and the Hawthorn Hawks at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on April 03, 2022 In Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Michael Willson/AFL Photos via Getty Images)

Carlton has enlisted ‘The Resilience Project’ founder Hugh van Cuylenburg to help power the new connectedness behind the club’s remarkable surge this season.

The Blues are in reach of their first finals appearance since 2013 after embarking on considerable cultural and game style change under new coach Michael Voss over summer.

While Voss deserves credit for shaping the team’s new hard edge and selflessness, off the field van Cuylenburg has helped enhance the players’ mindsets and team bond, after another tumultuous season ended with the sacking of coach David Teague last year.

Sources said van Cuylenburg’s work had helped the Blues start afresh with a new optimism and grateful attitude in 2022, helping ease the anguish from recent failed seasons.

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Hugh Van Cuylenburg is the founder of the Resilience Project, which fosters resilience for mental health. Picture: Jake Nowakowski

In particular, the mental health expert has partnered closely with Voss on embracing his own vulnerabilities in his second stint as coach.

One of the other biggest beneficiaries is inspirational captain Patrick Cripps, who has bounced back from two tough years to become a Brownlow Medal frontrunner.

After attending a Resilience Project presentation in Melbourne, Cripps was so taken by the program that he bought 50 copies of van Cuylenburg’s book to give to each of his teammates at the start of the pre-season.

Voss addressed van Cuylenburg’s work in his initial interview with Blues’ powerbrokers when Voss went for the job last year and quickly sought to bring the former schoolteacher across to Carlton after time together at Port Adelaide.

Hugh van Cuylenburg with Dustin Martin in the lead up to the Richmond’s 2017 premiership. Picture: Supplied

The effectiveness of The Resilience Project has been widely acknowledged by some of the country’s biggest sports stars including Richmond superstar Dustin Martin, former Australian cricket captain Steve Smith, numerous NRL legends including Billy Slater, and Collingwood champion Nathan Buckley.

Former Melbourne and Port Adelaide star Jack Watts, who teamed up with van Cuylenburg at the Power, said the program — which is based on the principles of gratitude, empathy and mindfulness — was invaluable.

“It is pretty amazing the work that he does because he breaks down the masculinity barriers of a football club and helps everyone really open up with each other,” Watts said.

“You spend every day with these guys, but how much do you really know them and their stories?

“With some of Hugh’s stuff, you really get to know the human behind the footballer and their struggles and their strengths and I think what it does is make everything so much more real for everyone.

“Seeing some of your teammates open up and talk about some of their hardest things in their lives — you see guys balling their eyes out in front of each other.

Blues head coach Michael Voss and Patrick Cripps are big supporters of the program, which is based on the principles of gratitude, empathy and mindfulness.

“It’s only human nature to care more about that person and have a deeper feeling, and go the extra mile for them.

“So there’s just so much more understanding and a much closer bond, because it’s not just about football, it’s really understanding who they are as a person.”

Richmond embarked on a similar program to help connect the team and kickstart their premiership dynasty in 2017 when they began the ‘HHH’ sessions where players opened up about a hero, hardship or highlight in their lives.