Sunday Shout: Carlton great Wayne Johnston hits out at current players

One of Carlton’s greatest knew exactly when the alarms bells for the Blues’ season of discontent began. And while he’s not calling for Michael Voss to be sacked, he’s desperate for one change.

Four-time Carlton premiership great Wayne Johnston believes the “alarm bells” for Carlton’s season of discontent started ringing back in round 1.

Johnston, 67, said the capitulation to Richmond, and the messy “dick-pic” saga that saw president Luke Sayers depart, signalled a season that has left him despairing for the club’s short-term future.

Wayne Johnston.

JON ANDERSON: The last few months must have been hard watching?

WAYNE JOHNSTON: I remain a proud Carlton man and will always love the club. But I’m hurting like every true Carlton person is. Are we a team right now? I don’t believe so. And our boys are really well paid, so have some bloody pride and finish the year off with some credibility, because right now you don’t have much. It’s a disgraceful way to treat your supporters.

JA: Should the club show faith in Michael Voss?

WJ: Most definitely. Michael should at the very least coach out the rest of the year. The actual responsibility is on the 23 players each week to create a remarkable effort that comes from a consistent game plan. Now the finals are gone, perhaps going faster, handball forward, more direct.

JA: Do you watch them a lot?

WJ: Yes I do, and go with our son Darcy, but it’s hard to watch our lack of skill, and our lack of effective tackling. When I played, we, Peter Bosustow and I, wanted to embarrass half-back flankers and hurt them in every way possible, via tackling, via skill.

Peter Bosustow and Wayne Johnston celebrate a goal.

JA: Have you seen any bright spots?

WJ: I actually can’t tell you what is going to happen from one minute to the next. If I go to watch Collingwood, I know what I’m going to get.

JA: So where does the improvement come from?

WJ: I would ask you, how many of our star players have improved? Patrick Cripps has peaked. Sam Walsh has been injured and stagnant. Has Charlie Curnow reached his best? Will Harry McKay improve? Jacob Weitering and Tom De Koning can’t be faulted.

JA: In fairness, the club has actively recruited.

WJ: And paid players like Mitch McGovern, Zac Williams and Jack Martin good money for inconsistent returns. North Melbourne brutalised us and yet in the last quarter, when we kicked five goals, we had players doing high fives. Hang on, you blokes are going to lose and you are still carrying on like that. You have to be kidding.

JA: Not big on high fives?

WJ: At the appropriate time, fine, but seeing that against North was embarrassing.

JA: What would you change?

WJ: Now September has gone, play the kids and keep playing them, rather than dropping them after one game.

ROO FIRES BACK

North Melbourne’s four-goal 1975 grand final hero John Burns has angrily refuted a suggestion his boycott of this Thursday’s club dinner has a misogynist undertone.

Burns, 75, took exception to a comment during the week that the reason he wouldn’t be attending was “largely about gender”.

“Is the journalist who made that comment, Caroline Wilson, a mindreader? I just wish she took the professional courtesy of ringing me,” Burns said.

“When our AFLW team won the premiership last year, I watched with pride, having sent a text of best wishes to coach Darren Crocker on the morning of the game.

“My reasoning for not going this Thursday has everything to do with the 1975 group not being offered a stand-alone dinner, and nothing to do with women who have added so much to our great club.”

RIVAL FUNCTION

Further to Sam Kekovich’s decision not to attend North Melbourne’s function at Marvel Stadium this Thursday, the man himself is now considering organising a function at The Emerald Hotel in South Melbourne.

“That way men like Barry Goodingham, Arnold Briedis and Gary Cowton will be able to attend, plus so many of those who ultimately didn’t play in the grand final.”

HUDDO ON GF COMMS

Fox Footy may adopt a novel approach to this year’s AFL grand final, a game Channel 7 holds the exclusive calling rights for.

Fox is planning to call the game without going to air, but then use that recording for replays. It would mean Anthony Hudson won’t call for 3AW on grand final day, opening the way for a new GF caller at 3AW.

RACING FURORE

- Gilbert Gardiner

Alice Springs trainer Dick Leech has been charged with conduct prejudicial for comments in a leaked video about stopping Darwin Cup-bound Hasseltoff from winning a lead-up race on Saturday.

In a video sent to owners of the former Victorian-based galloper Hasseltoff, Leech said the Alice Springs Cup winner would go around Saturday “for a look” in the 1300m Gold Cup (Division 2).

“He’s getting a fair bit of spark in him now,” Leech said after initial commentary about the gelding’s condition.

“He’ll go around next Saturday in the 1300m … but we’ll only be going for a look.

“We’ll get beat … we gotta get beat then we’ll go for the Chief Minister’s (Cup) a fortnight later, mile.

“We got to win that and then on towards the (Darwin) Cup but going quite good.”

Hasseltoff in action. Picture: Nikki Westover

A person behind the camera then asked Leech, “all right, so hopefully the jockey can hold him?”

“Yeah, yeah, he will be getting held,” Leech laughed.

“The worst jockey in Australia put on him.”

Northern Territory stewards obtained the leaked footage on Thursday and ordered Leech to front an inquiry on Friday.

NT chairman of stewards David Hensler said Leech pleaded guilty to a conduct prejudicial charge.

Stewards expect to hand down a monetary penalty in coming days.

“It’s of great concern to us, the stewards, that (vision) would be in the public arena,” Hensler said. “We’ve treated the matter very seriously.”

Leech scratched Hasseltoff on Thursday after the horse pulled up lame from a track gallop.

Originally published as Sunday Shout: Carlton great Wayne Johnston hits out at current players