AFL finals 2023: Charlie Curnow not concerned by quiet semi-final

Praise has been heaped on Carlton’s wing trio by an admiring teammate as they reveal how the Blues have risen so rapidly.

Blake Acres celebrates his second goal in the semi-final win over Melbourne on Friday night. Picture: Michael Willson / Getty Images

Carlton star Charlie Curnow says he is refreshed and ready to bounce back in the preliminary final after a rare off-night in the semi-final triumph against Melbourne.

Demons defender Steven May delivered one of his best performances for the season to limit Curnow to only nine disposals and 1.2, but the Coleman medallist is not worried by his quiet performance on the big stage.

He said the inclusion of Harry McKay after he missed last week through concussion would also help him out on the field against the Lions, who are facing some uncertainty in their defensive end as Jack Payne battles a neck concern.

“My process each week is just trying to create a contest, get the ball to ground and work off from there,” Curnow said.

“You get to come up against the best defenders in the comp, and that’s the best part about the finals - (May) is a gun, and it was a tough contest on the weekend.

“It obviously helps me out heaps, having ‘H’ back in as another tall forward target who can draw defenders, and it helps the whole team.

Charlie Curnow told reporters he was refreshed and ready to make his mark on the preliminary final after Carlton’s training. Picture: Michael Klein

“It’s pretty important, you can work off each other and I probably don’t have to run to as many contests which is nice, you can share the load off each other.”

Curnow said there was no consolation in knowing the Blues could win without him performing, but the players knew they could step up when others were absent after injuries to key players during the campaign.

“Throughout the season, I never really thought like that - the boys have shown throughout the year that without certain players in the team they can get the job done,” he said.

“The (Lions have) great defenders, they’ve been doing it a long time and they’ve obviously got a great team defence too.

“I try not to look at defenders too much, I back in what I’m doing ... me and Harry look at our leading patterns a lot, and (forwards coach) Ash Hansen helps us a lot.

“I focus more on myself and not worry too much about them.”

Jack Payne and Charlie Curnow contest a mark the last time Brisbane and Carlton met in round 8. Picture: Michael Klein

The star forward said two days off after the semi-final success had helped the group reset and prepare themselves to ride the emotional rollercoaster again at the Gabba.

“(The finals have) been pretty hectic, it’s been a lot of fun. You probably didn’t realise until after the game how the crowd was because you’re so focused on getting the result,” he said.

“Me, Walshy, Paddy Dow and Adam Cerra had dinner on Saturday night ... we just chilled out, walked the dogs on Sunday.

“We had two days off, thanks to Kreuzy (Matt Kreuzer) and Vossy for giving us two days off, that was nice.

“I kind of got back to things ... the normal routine of life, I guess ... it kind of helps you get back in the moment.”

Curnow said the Blues were “honoured” to be generating so much excitement among their supporters in their incredible second half of the season.

“The outside world outside of the footy club can be pretty full on ... there’s fans, Mots (Jesse Motlop) is walking down Lygon St after the game, I don’t know why, but he was getting a bit of attention,” Curnow said.

“He probably realises how big it is and how important it is to a lot of people, which is a great honour to us as players.”

‘Instant reactions’ driving Blues’ flag tilt: Pittonet

Carlton ruckman Marc Pittonet says his teammates are thriving amid wild crowds and neck-and-neck finishes as coach Michael Voss’ plans come to fruition after 18 months.

Pittonet lightheartedly played down Sam Docherty’s shoulder injury as “a bit of carry-on” and praised his leadership in the final moments of the semi-final win over Melbourne. He said the Blues’ composure to produce the winning goal against the run of play in front of 96,000 screaming fans was no fluke.

He said the early-season slump that left the Blues languishing in 15th place after round 15 was not being ignored by the players and staff but rather embraced as a necessary hardship to build their current playing style.

“It was all part of the plan … it’s one of those things, and we’ve spoken about it before, we don’t look at is as that 12-week journey from the middle of the season. We look at it more as a holistic 18-month journey, including the back end of last year, the start of winning last year, just that time under Voss with this group,” Pittonet told RSN’s Breakfast with Harf program.

Blake Acres kicked the last-minute winner to thunderous roars at the MCG in Friday night’s semi-final against Melbourne. Picture: Michael Willson / Getty Images

“We’ve seen the culmination of a number of events that have built resilience and grit, and that came out with a few minutes to go on the weekend.

“You see some of the instant reactions of boys turning (into the) corridor when the moment came, which patterns to run, who to hit, and you just see them on automatic – they knew what to do under that pressure in that moment.”

He said vice-captain Docherty’s leadership had been crucial in the final passages of play against the Demons, while also lauding the tremendous running of the Blues’ other wingmen Blake Acres and Matthew Cottrell.

“(Docherty) has been that good a leader and that good a player, the ability to take that mark with about a minute to go and deliver that kick exactly where it needed to go, it was such a clutch play,” Pittonet said.

Pittonet praised Sam Docherty’s composure in the final moments to set up Acres’ goal. Picture: Dylan Burns / Getty Images

“(Acres) should be a fan favourite, should’ve been all year in my opinion. He just gets it done, just the work rate. (Matthew) Cottrell is the other one who for the same reason is getting plaudits … they’ve been doing it all year, and they’re just getting that reward for turning up and covering that much distance.”

Pittonet said the Blues had loved the cutthroat atmosphere of their two finals and dismissed any notion of fear of another close finish against the Lions on their home turf.
Asked if he thought Carlton could be the first side to beat Brisbane at the Gabba this season when they do battle in the Saturday twilight fixture, he said: “Why not?

“I don’t think we’ve played there this year, have we? Maybe that’s an omen.

“We’re going to get a really good Carlton contingent coming to the ground which is going to help us. We have a little home away from home.

“(The frenzied atmosphere) is what you play football for, it’s what you do the pre-seasons, the early nights, the early mornings (for).

“The drilling … we step into those moments and go, ‘We’ve been here before, we know what to do, let’s embrace the moment, enjoy the crowd and execute on what we need to do’.”

Pittonet said the Blues had come together in groups for “sporadic recovery” sessions after being given time off in the wake of Friday night’s triumph.

The players returned to Ikon Park on Monday morning for an open training session and will travel to Brisbane on Friday morning ahead of the preliminary final.