Carlton midfielder Sam Walsh says the players need to take accountability for in game shifts

One of Carlton’s best players has thrown his support behind coach Michael Voss, declaring the players at fault for the Blues’ poor start to 2025.

Carlton midfielder Sam Walsh has defended embattled coach Michael Voss, declaring the players need to be held accountable for the Blues’ winless start through the opening four games of their season.

The Blues kicked just 2.5 in the second half against Collingwood on Thursday night to ultimately cough up their fourth consecutive halftime lead.

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With Voss under the pump, Walsh said it was the players who were responsible for the momentum shifts in quarters after backing in the coach, his game plan and the side’s fitness.

“Yeah absolutely, we’re all behind Vossy, he’s been a great support for all of us, we’ve been through a lot of things together,” he said.

“I feel like he assesses and sees the game really well and gives us a clear path forward, now it’s up to us to keep on taking that accountability.

“At the end of the day, we’re the ones out there, it’s not the coaches, if a team kicks one or two goals it’s ‘where do we want to go, fight back and get it back or let it happen for a quarter’ – that’s where it lies.”

Walsh said the strategy had shown its efficiency in games but only in patches.

“If you look at our games there’s been quarters where that looks like our footy,” he said.

“Powerful, aggressive, strong in the contest, giving our forwards a chance and then in behind that defending really hard.

“The problem all the fans see, we see, we feel, is that we can’t do that at the moment for four quarters.

“Like I said before, that can be for different reasons, I am not going to stand here and say there’s one thing we can fix and then start winning every game.

“I feel as though the competition is so close now that it’s like if you’re off for at least a quarter you’re probably going to get beat.”

Walsh quashed fitness being Carlton’s issue, saying it’s “definitely” not the cause of the Blues’ four losses.

He instead put it down to Carlton’s efficiency with and without the ball.

“I feel like our efficiency has let us down, sometimes that’s different for each individual or as a line group” he said.

“In a game you can try and force it a bit more and go away from actually works and playing to your strengths as a team.

“Maybe that leads you to bite off things that aren’t there or we all collapse into the contest then it give teams space on the outside and makes you look like you’re not fit because you’re chasing for four quarters.

“There’s different areas why that shows up but we know from the work we’ve done in pre-season that we’ve got the capacity to do it.”