Carlton returns to finals for the first time since 2013 following comeback win over Gold Coast

The emotion of Carlton’s win to secure a finals spot was plain to see, but coach Michael Voss had a poignant message after their win over the Suns, it’s not just about making finals.

Blake Acres kicks Carlton forward. Picture: Russell Freeman/AFL Photos via Getty Images.

A stoic Michael Voss declared Carlton’s “job isn’t done” but the Blues boss’s eyes betrayed the emotion of the moment.

Ten years of toil. A decade of demons. All washed away in a euphoric eruption the likes of which Carlton fans had not felt for far too long.

The travelling sea of navy blue roared to life as the siren sounded around Heritage Bank Stadium, signalling a ninth-straight victory that punched their long-awaited ticket to the post-season.

Voss said all the right things when quizzed after the match.

He praised the Suns – who, it must be said, probably should have won.

He hailed Charlie Curnow – their five-goal hero and final-minute saviour who looms as the club’s ‘Mr September’.

He threw forward to a final round date with the Giants and the importance of not getting ahead of themselves, before sharing an injury update on some soon-to-return stars.

And amidst all of that made sure to mention the Blues’ job was far from done.

The Coleman Medal leader was the hero at both ends for the Blues. (Photo by Albert Perez/AFL Photos via Getty Images)

Of course it isn’t. They harbour much higher hopes than a short stint in September.

Carlton’s rollercoaster season has not yet come to a stop. But for a few brief moments on Saturday afternoon it paused – and Voss let himself take it in.

“No, that was a big moment. It was a big moment for the club,” he said of the celebrations on the siren.

“Since I started, that goal (to make finals) has been clear, about what our direction need look like.

“We’ve had to work through a lot of things as a team. We’ve had an extreme amount of adversity – there’s a great story in behind that – we’ve taken a lot out of it and we hope we can use that moving forward.

“The last nine weeks has been amazing but that was a great moment for the club, to be able to have that confirmation that we’re playing finals footy.

“It hasn’t been said for a while at this club and I’m pleased that I’m saying it.”

The feeling in the rooms matched the emotion in the coach’s eyes.

The song was a few octaves louder and the back slaps from players, coaches and support staff were heartier.

George Hewett admitted he couldn’t quite grasp the enormity of the drought-breaking finals return, given he had only been party to two of the ten long years.

“I don’t think so,” he conceded.

“Maybe because I was pretty fortunate (to play finals) at Sydney.

“But just looking around now, it means a lot to a lot of people which is very exciting.

“Crippa and Doc said it’s their first finals series and that’s pretty special.”

It will be Carlton skipper Patrick Cripps’ first finals. (Photo by Russell Freeman/AFL Photos via Getty Images)

In fact, Hewett’s eight finals appearances are two more than the rest of his Blues teammates combined.

Only four players in Saturday’s winning side have played in September and none in the Navy Blue.

And yet the footy that Carlton has produced over the past nine weeks has thrust it directly into the premiership conversation.

When the Suns and Blues locked horns in round 14 such a sentence was unfathomable.

Carlton was on a six-game losing skid and Voss’ future called into question. Meanwhile the Suns were fresh off a bye following two stirring victories in the Top End.

The Blues’ 59-point win that day didn’t move the dial too much given the pre-season expectation was finals and to get there meant having to run the table.

So that’s exactly what they did – with and without some of their stars.

Sam Walsh, Adam Cerra, Mitch McGovern and Matt Kennedy are all plug and play starters who have not featured in recent weeks but are expected to be fit for the finals assault.

Spearhead Harry McKay dragged himself back from a knee injury a month ahead of schedule and added another dimension to the forward line against Gold Coast.

Voss’ men have been written off on many an occasion this season.

When injury struck ahead of the clash with Collingwood there was almost a sense of inevitability that, for all their efforts, bad luck would ultimately bring them undone.

But at each time of asking they have answered the call and it happened again on Saturday.

The Suns raced out to a 33-point quarter-time advantage and even held a two-goal buffer late in the final term.

Michael Voss’ men rebounded from a disastrous first quarter to take home the four points. (Photo by Russell Freeman/AFL Photos via Getty Images)

The hosts had a season-high 65 inside 50s and were plus-seven in clearance differential against the best stoppage team in the AFL over the past month.

Carlton looked half-cooked and for some in the stands, minds might have drifted back to the heartbreak of last season.

“There were moments there where it didn’t feel like we deserved to win,” Voss conceded.

“Even in the last quarter there were a few moments where you felt, ‘Oh maybe that’s it, maybe it’s a little bit too hard now’.

“(But) every challenge we kept going at it, stuck to what we believed in and were able to win in the end.

“In those critical moments we’ve learnt as a football team. We’ve had plenty of those over the last nine weeks. We’ve been exposed to that previously and probably haven’t thrived as well as we are now.

“We had a moment in the fourth quarter with Collingwood and we stared that down, which was real growth for us.

“We had some big moments against St Kilda at halftime and we had to absorb a lot … and found a way against Melbourne in the last four minutes.

“We weren’t fantastic in those last four minutes, but somehow found a way.

“We weren’t perfect today – in fact we were imperfect a lot – but we were able to work our way through that.”

Big forward Harry McKay made his return to the team. (Photo by Russell Freeman/AFL Photos via Getty Images)

In what shapes as the most open finals series in recent memory, with questions marks on every team inside the top four, it’s the fifth-placed Blues who are playing the best footy.

Saturday’s win was a microcosm of the Blues’ season: horror start, scintillating stretch, followed by a gritty and composed finish.

Saturday was the time to celebrate a return to finals.

On Monday, the finals assault begins.

“This wasn’t about making finals, it was about impacting them,” Voss declared.

“We’ve got more in us and we’re really keen to go to the line hard because we feel like we’ve got that momentum.”

DETAILS

Suns: 6.5 (41) 7.7 (49) 9.7 (61) 13.9 (87)

Blues: 1.2 (8) 7.5 (47) 8.12 (60) 13.13 (91)

Goal Kickers Suns: Malcolm Rosas Jnr, Alex Sexton (2), Ben Ainsworth (2), David Swallow (4), Jack Lukosius, Touk Miller, Mabior Chol, Brandon Ellis

Goal Kickers Blues: Matthew Cottrell, Charlie Curnow (5), Matthew Owies (2), Jack Martin (2), Jesse Motlo (2), Harry McKay

Best on Suns: Mac Andrew, David Swallow, Jarrod Witts, Ben Ainsworth, Sam Flanders, Touk Miller

Best on Blues: Charlie Curnow, Sam Docherty, George Hewett, Patrick Cripps, Jacob Weitering, Nic Newman

3: Charlie Curnow 2: Jacob Weitering 1: David Swallow

Originally published as Carlton returns to finals for the first time since 2013 following comeback win over Gold Coast