Gary Buckenara rates Carlton’s list at the end of the 2021 season
Carlton has been an active player in recent trade periods but the Blues must be strategic about who to target this year — and who to let slide, writes Gary Buckenara.
AFL News
Don't miss out on the headlines from AFL News. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Last year, I said the time for excuses at Carlton was over.
Season 2021 needed to be the year the Blues showed the football world they were coming.
Ouch. Another year wasted.
I don’t blame Blues supporters for becoming very disillusioned with the club.
The club’s football department review has claimed the scalp of coach David Teague and I expect we will see more changes.
They still need to look closely at their football management, list management and recruiting.
The Blues need to continue to chase Alastair Clarkson to team him up with high performance director Andrew Russell again.
Watch every 2021 Toyota AFL Finals Series match before Grand Final. Live & Ad-Break Free on Kayo. New to Kayo? Try 14-days free >
Clarkson is the best man for that club, so they should be doing everything in their power to convince him not to take a year off.
I’m sure Blues fans would definitely want to get him to give them some hope and something positive for the club to build on because right now, they are frustrated and on the edge of leaving, fearing the ship is sinking.
Why do they think this? Because only 12 A and B ranked players is a worry along with eight future AB players, which is very thin.
The Blues also have far too many C-graders — 19 of them — and this is an example of list management and coaches ranking their lists too optimistically.
I bet many of my C-grade players here would have been rated as B-grade players internally.
That’s why they must look at the list management and recruiting department and make changes, even if they have done so only recently.
The people at the top who make the football department appointments also need to take responsibility.
There are big decisions ahead for Carlton and if they don’t keep trying to get Clarkson for 2022 many people will ask why they did not move heaven and earth to get him.
He would be their best recruit by far.
LIST NEEDS
Too many players who were recruited or traded into the club have not developed as they hoped.
Talented, genuine footballers, with skills and footy smarts are needed down back and in the midfield. The ruck stocks are thin and need attention.
The list is full of B and C-grade talent. Obviously, Walsh is a star of the future — if not now. But Paddy Dow, Tom De Koning, Sam Philp, Liam Stocker, Lochie O’Brien and Matthew Cottrell all need to become very good B-grade players or otherwise they will be in strife on the talent front.
They need to move on some of their C graders apart from Matthew Owies, Michael Gibbons, Jack Newnes, Charlie Curnow (when fit he is a potential A-grade), Marc Pittonet, David Cunningham, Zac Fisher, Lachie Fogarty, Jack Martin and Matthew Kennedy.
TRADE TARGETS
They need to plan very well in what they do here as they cannot afford to bring in more C graders.
They also need more developing players, so giving up early picks is not the way to go. Looking for the right free agent would be the better option and keep their early picks.
UNTOUCHABLES
Their A, B and future AB players.
TRADE BAIT
Unless you were offered an unbelievable deal for Patrick Cripps then I don’t think they will be big players in the trade period as, apart from Cripps, Walsh and Harry McKay, who else is going to get you multiple early picks? And why would you look to trade them anyway?
It is the amount of C-graders at present that is the issue, so investing in talent and developing players is going to be the best option for the Blues.
RATING THE LIST
WHAT THE RATINGS MEAN
List management is one of the most important jobs at an AFL club.
Poor decisions can be catastrophic — and Collingwood proved that last year.
Far too many clubs can often hold an overly-optimistic view when ranking their own lists and this can lead to years of mediocrity and has Carlton done this recently?
When clubs are rating their lists, they should rank players as: A+, A, B+, B, C+, C and Development.
In this list analysis, I have just done A, B, C and two tiers of development (“future AB players” and “need more time”) because with the younger players it is important to see who is coming through and those that need more time.
The important area for clubs to look at is how many A and B ranked players they have as well as future consistent AB players.
These rankings are my opinions, but they should give supporters a reasonable snapshot as to where their playing list sits now — and how they might look in a few years’ time.
Players 22 and over
A-grade: Elite players on any AFL list
B: Top 10-18 player on most lists
C: An 19-30 player on a list
Developing: Aged 21 or under
Future AB players: These are players that will hopefully develop into an A or B ranked player once they turn 22. They might be playing to this level now, but it takes sustained years.
Need more time: These players would be a player recently drafted that is still developing and therefore will need more time to see if he is likely to develop into an A or B grade player.
THE RATINGS
A-grade: Patrick Cripps, Harry McKay
B-grade: Sam Petrevski-Seton, Zac Williams, Liam Jones, Sam Docherty, Lachie Plowman, Caleb Marchbank, Jacob Weitering, Ed Curnow, Adam Saad, Will Setterfield.
C-grade: Jack Silvagni, Marc Murphy (retired), Matthew Kennedy, Lachlan Fogarty, Mitch McGovern, Eddie Betts (retired), Jack Martin, Nic Newman, Zac Fisher, Marc Pittonet, David Cunningham, Charlie Curnow, Tom Williamson, Jack Newnes, Oscar McDonald, Michael Gibbons, Levi Casboult, Matthew Owies, Jordan Boyd.
DEVELOPMENT
Future AB players: Paddy Dow, Lochie O’Brien, Tom De Koning, Liam Stocker, Brodie Kemp, Sam Walsh, Sam Philp, Matthew Cottrell.
Need more time: Jack Carroll, Luke Parks, Corey Durdin, Sam Ramsay, Josh Honey, Alex Mirkov.
MORE GARY BUCKENARA
Bucky: How Kangas can become a destination club
Buckenara: Hawks’ gun should be Pies’ top trade target
LIST BREAKDOWN
A Grade = 2
B Grade = 10
C Grade = 19
Development
Future AB players = 8
Need more time: = 6
CRYSTAL BALL
The Blues list is clogged by C-graders and, like Hawthorn, traded for too many experienced players rather than investing in the draft over the past three to four years and this is why there is a poor balance to their list.
The eight future AB players is a tick but it needs to move on a number of the C-graders and invest again in the draft for a few years to develop a list of younger players.
MORE AFL
LYON LEFT IN DARK AS BLUES HUNT OTHER COACH CANDIDATES
SAINT TURNS BACK ON FREE AGENCY, DOG’S DAYS NUMBERED
LIST CHANGES: BOMBER FAVOURITE LOOKING FOR A NEW HOME
Finals may well be out of the question for a year or two but they don’t have any other choice in my opinion.
A couple of steps back to go forward might be what they need here as there are some very talented players still learning the caper and they must play these younger players from 2022, show faith in them and be patient for them to develop into A and B-graders.
Patience and a slow build is what is needed and a fresh look to their football department for those making the critical appointments, list management and recruiting decisions from 2022 onwards – but will they do this? Time will tell.
Dees star reveals ‘robust discussions’ after turmoil of 2024
Melbourne star Jack Viney says the problems faced by the club in 2024 should be a thing of the past after a pre-season that prioritised player connection and team bonding.
Suns’ tipping point: What needs to happen to keep Rowell from Cats
Geelong is yet again in pursuit of a star rival midfielder, this time it being Matt Rowell. But is it actually possible? Callum Dick examines the possibility of Rowell in the blue and white hoops.