By Jon Pierik
Carlton supporters could be forgiven for thinking Patrick Cripps had lost his mind when interviewed on Fox Footy after last weekend’s breakthrough win against hapless West Coast.
“It probably sounds odd when you are 0-4, but we feel like a lot of our footy is in order,” Cripps said.
Patrick Cripps and his Blues believe they’ve turned a corner as they head into the Good Friday clash against North Melbourne.Credit: Getty Images
That’s not what fans were thinking – or yelling – after losses to Richmond, Hawthorn, the Western Bulldogs and Collingwood, particularly after watching their side crumble under pressure after leading at half-time in each of those games.
“It’s probably just a bit of ball-movement stuff [that needs to improve],” Cripps said.
“My message to the boys is to just keep believing. We are stopping teams [from] scoring, and that keeps you in games. Like you have seen this year, in every game we have been in front at half-time.
“I am really bullish about what we can do, but it’s nice to get a win, I am not going to lie.”
So, heading into the Good Friday clash against North Melbourne, was Cripps right to say many facets of his team’s game were in good order? Well, err … yes, he was.
The Blues boast the league’s third-best defence, conceding only 71.6 points per game. Compare this to their opponents on Friday – the Kangaroos have given up 110.2 points per game. When the ball does go inside their defensive 50-metre zone, the Blues are holding up. They are fourth best when it comes to restricting goals against, and fifth best for scores against.
Jacob Weitering is having another strong season. Veteran recruit Nick Haynes, after a sluggish start against the Tigers, has been solid. Swiss army knife Jack Silvagni has largely done the job in a new role.
“As a foundation, keep valuing defence because that’s what keeps you in games,” Cripps said.
Time away: Jack Silvagni says the trip to Adelaide may have galvanised the Blues.Credit: AFL Photos
Typically, when a club’s board and executive interrogate their coach about a team’s (lack of) performance, defensive numbers are highly rated. As it stands, this should ease the pressure on Michael Voss.
In the contest, the Blues are also holding up well, ranking No.1 for hardball-get differential and No.2 for contested possession differential – they beat West Coast on this measure by 59; the equal-fourth-biggest margin ever.
In Cripps, Tom De Koning, Sam Walsh, George Hewett and Adam Cerra – the latter with eight clearances last weekend – the Blues typically have this facet of the game covered.
They have long taken tremendous pride in winning the contested ball, but it’s on the outside where they have needed to improve. Sam Walsh last week said too many players had been caught on the inside, and that was why they had looked slow on the spread when the ball cleared stoppages.
The balance was there against the Eagles on Saturday, but, well … they are the Eagles. The Kangaroos, with only seven wins through Alastair Clarkson’s time, are still mired in a painful rebuild, much to the chagrin of many close to the club, but they do boast a midfield that could hurt the Blues, particularly if Luke Davies-Uniacke gets moving after a poor final quarter against Gold Coast.
Where the Blues must improve is up forward, and they will be without Harry McKay (concussion) this week, while the injured Brodie Kemp is gone for the season. They are 15th in scoring, averaging 74.2 points per game, and are 17th for scores and goals per inside-50. That’s not good enough.
Silvagni, fighting for a contract extension, believes the Blues turned the proverbial corner against the Eagles.
“Sometimes away trips can galvanise a group when you get away together, have a meal together and stay with one another and enjoy each other’s company, and it was trying conditions out there, it was bloody hot,” Silvagni said.
“I think we played a brand of footy, a real contested style of footy that will hold us in good stead and something that we want to aspire to is that contested brand. It was nice to get the job done.”
Cripps said the Blues last week “aired out” any issues the players may have had, and they now hope to generate momentum leading into the middle of the season. After the Kangaroos, premiership contenders Geelong, Adelaide, St Kilda, Sydney and Greater Western Sydney await before the mid-season bye.
That’s a challenging run. But Cripps is bullish, and Silvagni likes what he has seen.
“We understand it’s early in the year, and we believe that we have a style of game that can hold up for the long run,” Silvagni said.
However, if that game style does not hold up in the short term, particularly against the Kangaroos, the long run is not worth thinking about.
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