Carlton‘s 2023 premiership push is powered by the measliest defence in the AFL
On another dark day for the Blues in May, Michael Voss faced the reality of his side’s situation head on – and he hasn’t looked back. Here’s how Carlton has surged into flag contention.
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One of the Seven Wonders of the World, The Great Wall of China took over 2300 years to build.
Michael Voss has erected The Great Wall of Carlton in less than 23 months.
After an eighth-straight win over Melbourne on Saturday night, the Blues’ premiership credentials are more authentic than a piece of Lygon Street Lasagna.
And there is one key reason why – defence.
Twelve weeks ago, Voss was accused by frustrated fans of having no game plan and – frankly – no idea.
The Blues were having problems at both ends of the ground and copped a 28-point loss to arch rival Collingwood on a Sunday in May.
In the bowels of the MCG that day, Voss faced questions at his post-match press conference about his side’s inability to put a score on the board as it booted just 7.15 (57).
However, the second-year Carlton coach had no interest in talking about the forward line.
“I don’t want to be walking out of here and be lost on the message that defensively we’re not good enough right now,” he said.
“I understand there’s been some chatter around what we need to do offensively and how we can maximise better and be more efficient going forward. But the reality is the game’s imperfect. There’s mistakes that happen. How you correct those mistakes and flick into defence so you can get the ball back quickly, we’re just not recovering quick enough. That’s what we’ve got to get to work on as a footy team and that’s our expectations that we have of our team.”
It wasn’t quite a case of flicking the switch after that match.
The Blues lost another three games on the trot and coughed up 86 points to Essendon in a round 13 loss that was very nearly the final nail in their coffin this season.
But since then Carlton has become the measliest defensive side in the competition – much to Voss’ delight.
The Blues held Melbourne to just 8.8 (56) on Saturday night (see below).
The Demons had only three goals on the board at halftime, having registered scores of more than 100 points in three of their previous four matches.
“At halftime I said, ‘If we need to win this 44 to 41, that’s the way we’re going to win it,” Voss said.
“If they choose to defend, then we defend harder.
“So if that’s what it takes and that’s what is needed, then that’s the contest that we need to be able to live in. We’ve had to learn to play that way and put value in it and put pride in it that that’s the outcome that we’re after. Thankfully we’ve stayed present to that and we’re getting some results as a result.”
The regularly rolled-out footy phrase ‘Defence wins premierships’ is more than just a saying.
It’s true.
Each of the past 10 premiers have ranked top-six in the competition for points against.
Since round 14, Carlton ranks a clear No. 1, conceding just 60.6 points per game.
Last year’s premier, Geelong, averaged 67.6 points against per game during the home-and-away season.
In 2021, Melbourne won the flag after averaging only 65.6 points against.
We could go on, but the point is that the Blues are – on form – tracking better defensively than many of the recent sides to lift the premiership cup.
The Cats had Tom Stewart and Sam De Koning last year.
Melbourne had the power combination of Steven May and Jake Lever.
Carlton has Jacob Weitering – and a full-ground defensive system.
On every line, snapping into defensive transition is at the forefront of the minds of the Blues players rather than being the afterthought it appeared to be earlier in the season.
The Blues are brutal chasing after the footy and if they can’t get to it first, they’ve become just as tough at going after the opposition player who does.
Carlton laid 87 tackles against Melbourne on Saturday night, captain Patrick Cripps leading the way with nine.
The pressure was also off the charts.
The Blues’ average pressure rating for the match was 206, after sitting at a whopping 224 in the first quarter.
The AFL average is 180.
That red-hot pressure around the ground has helped minimise the impact of turnovers – which was Carlton’s Achilles heel in the opening months of the year.
On that May day against Collingwood, the Blues conceded 58 points from turnovers and they gave up 48 points against Essendon three weeks later.
In the eight weeks since, they have conceded an average of just 38 points from turnovers – all while hammering opposition sides in scores from stoppages department.
“The biggest thing is we are winning different ways and we have shown a really great adaptability across the year,” Voss said on Saturday night.
“(There were) lots of questions asked of us, but we are showing that resilience and grit and we are able to put that into the way we are playing. You can see that the boys have some hunger and desire right now and they are really clear on what’s needed.”
On Sunday morning, Carlton was on the fourth rung of premiership betting odds with bookmaker TAB at a price of $7.
You could mount a case that Voss’ side should be alongside Collingwood in flag favouritism.
The Blues didn’t beat much in the early weeks of this current winning streak, but in the past five weeks they have now knocked off fellow September contenders Port Adelaide, Collingwood, St Kilda and Melbourne.
Carlton should lock in its first finals berth since 2013 with a win over the Gold Coast Suns next week – a team which it smashed by 59 points to begin the current eight-game winning streak.
If they can also topple Greater Western Sydney in the final round at the MCG, the Blues would enter September on a 10-match winning streak.
Momentum is a powerful thing and Carlton is building a serious head of steam.
If The Great Wall holds firm, anything is possible.
DID UMPIRES GET CONTROVERSIAL REVIEW RIGHT?
Carlton defender Caleb Marchbank claims he touched a ball on the goal line in the final 41 seconds of Saturday night’s match against Melbourne, denying the Demons victory.
In a controversial finish to the match at the MCG, a goal umpire deemed that a Christian Petracca shot on goal had been touched on the line by Marchbank.
The decision went to the goal review system, which reverted to the umpire’s call given there was insufficient evidence to say whether or not the ball had been touched.
A goal for Petracca would have put Melbourne in front by one point with just seconds to play.
However, the behind was ultimately the final score of the match as the Blues held on for a four-point win.
“I thought, ‘Please don’t overrule this’,” Carlton coach Michael Voss said.
“You can’t lose it this way. But the call went our way and we were able to hold on.
“I’ve spoken to him (Marchbank) and he says he did (touch the ball). At this point in time, it doesn’t matter to me. We will call it as touched and take the four point and walk away.”
Speaking after the final siren, Carlton captain Patrick Cripps said:
“We’re due for a bit of luck I reckon.
“We lost a few close ones last year. When you play the best sides, its moments and fingernails in it. It’s just a huge win.”
The incident was one of multiple controversial umpiring calls in the final minutes.
Demons forward Jacob Van Rooyen had his legs taken out by Carlton’s Alex Cincotta as he went to take a kick from 50m out tight on the boundary line in the final three minutes.
But Melbourne coach Simon Goodwin would not be drawn on the incident.
“I’m not going to get into the specifics of all of the umpiring decisions,” Goodwin said.
“I’ll let other people decide and judge their performance. That’s not for me. I’m here to talk about Melbourne and the game.”
Both teams received 17 free kicks during the match.
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