The "THEY KNOW WERE COMING" campaign, is very clever.

Pressure and expectations are tow elements that a winning team must deal with. It is how they become great teams.

Our great blues teams in the past, dealt with the very same pressure of expectation. Each game they played, they were expected to win. (maybe not by outsiders, but within the club) Its the very important ingredient for the Blue Swagger!!

Its only a guess, but I would be surprissed if Mr Pratt wasn't the man who endorsed the slogan. As with many business stratergies , sometimes you have to raise the bar or expectations to see who is ready for the ride ahead.

Its no coincidence, but many teams seem ready and primed when they play the blues!! Read the papers, see how often opposition players have made mention of our slogan. We have felt pressure that the top sides receive, as they have become the hunted!! Its a tough ride now, but once we learn how to deal with it, only good times ahead!!

If we can get our team back on track (top 8 finish) under this hype and expectation, by the time we find ourselves in the thick of finals pressure, I would think that we would be quite capable of turning that pressure into positive energy.

Go Blues!!!

Yeah that sounds plausible ... as an optimist i will believe it!

Also its nice to see people finally lowering thier expectations of our young, in need of muscle, inexperienced team. I think we will still sneak into the eight and will use the last 6 weeks as a great learning curve in order to achieve that ... from there I can see us maybe winning a final ... win or lose a final if we make the eight I think it will have been a great year. Not make the eight ... hmmm .. depending on the manner in which we do not make it I may still be happy.

This year is a building year ... building on experience, muscle, football smarts, gameplan ... all of it.

I will judge Ratts in the middle of next season - when hopefully we can start seeing a gameplan and performances like last week are few and far in between ... why ... because the players and the coach will have grown and learnt together.

Still a while off I know ... but after 8 years of misery at least we are starting to get some light ... hopefully next year we will be in the light and the year after SUN BAKING ... oh yeah!

As far as the kick ins go I believe we are hamstrung to some extent.
Apart from Kreuzer (Waite now injured) we don't have a player capable of regularly holding contested marks, so we constantly kick short.
The longer the radius the longer the arc, so there is more room the further the kicker kicks, but conversely the kick takes longer to arrive so there is more chance or an intercept or spoil.
We also have few players capable of spotting targets from 50 metres, Houlihan is one and should be in the side for this reason alone, Stevens is another.
We need to present longer marking targets with the smaller players drilled to run to a defined position in support, preferably within a 45deg arc from the goal but wider if necessary.

Answer the question....who excites you in the ressies right now?

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If I want your opinion, I'll give it to you!

I am excited to see how Grigg and Walker go with their comebacks. I am excited to see how Okeefe goes and Tiller in a few years. Jack Silvagni a few after that. Garlett is exciting. I am excited about who we draft at the end of this year and year after.

Why am i talking about excitement?

Things are not all doom and gloom. We have a young team learning the ropes in the big league. Providing they get to 5-5 after ten they have reached my expectations.

I expect us to be fighting it out at the top in 2011 - 2012 and with luck bring in a flag by 2014. We just have to keep adding to the core of top young players we have on the list now.

I am not about to go crying over little hiccups along the way.

I get excited too.. they have some real talent those kids you mentioned.

But when they do come back in we will just stop prop and handleball..

And they will be taught to play with no dare... no dash.... and just get caught in the nets the opposition coaches cast out knowing we will play right into their hands.......

then i feel sorry for them..

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I think Walker, Johnson and Grigg will make a hell a difference off half back and the middle. If we can get all 3 on the park along with Robbo, Armfield, Browne, Yarran, Murph, Gibbs and Krooze at the same time we have plenty to look forward to.

This draft we have to look at forward options. Try find some genuine small and mid size forwards like a Medhurst and Steve Johnson along with finding another Fev late in the draft. We've done well late in the draft so maybe Shane O'sullivan can be given the job finding us another Fev late in the draft

We got to get some mongrel in this team. Someone needs to lead the way

Maybe....maybe not.

Only time will tell.

Go Blues!

Walker and Grigg are part of our best 25 anyway. Yes they'd be handy additions but apart from that, I think there is some straw clutching going on......ffs, Melbourne could be fighting for top 6 by 2012......and even the tiges could win a flag with luck by 2014.

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If I want your opinion, I'll give it to you!

Just realistic expectations IMO 99prelim. When our core group of fine young players like GIbbs, Murphy, Kruezer ,Grigg, Betts ,Hampson ,Yarran etc have the experience, age and strength of Ablett, Bartel , Ball, Hodge,Mitchell ,Corey, JUdd ,Sewell and Del Santo we will be up there competing for a flag.

Until then there will be plenty of ups and downs. If we can continue to learn lessons along the way then all the better for us.

Have a good night at the footy.

I asked Cazz in the 2008ND thread whether the Recruiters generally felt that, after years of neglect by the Club, our list was now starting to equate to the lists of others. And we wreent talking about superstars, we were talking about all round quality, players coming through the ranks, depth in key positions etc.

Cazz said something like 'almost there'.

2000-2006 remains a wasteland for the Carlton Football Club. We've used the socialist system to jumpstart the list eg Judd, but we were coming from so far behind it wasnt funny. its only the continued mismanagement of clubs like Richmond and Fremantle - and Danihers reluctance to rebuild - that sees us moving ahread of them.

But people forget - every time we get a pick 1, other clubs get a top 15 pick. Every time we get a second round pick, so does every one else.

Look at our list and we're still carrying 8-10 just good average tryers (which is still better than out and out duds) from a few years ago. We're still short in key defence, we're still reliant on emerging ruckmen, we've only in this year been able to afford spots for our second and third small forwards for XXXX sake.

We've done well to get this far.

Financial support through Pratt saves the balance sheet but it doesnt improve you on the field. Yes we've got the add-ons but our list still has big holes.

I love Simon Wiggins as a player. But think about it; if a guy with his limited ability is on the cusp of 120 games for Carlton, then doesnt that tell you we've still got a long way to go?

Good post IMO.

Pragmatic.

Great post Molsey

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Everyone looks good in Navy Blue

Well I think Walker has done enough to demonstrate he's already a quality player and it sounds like the latest shoulder operation has been a success.
Grigg will be quality as well.
I just hope that Yarran lives up to his potential and Waite bounces back next year. Also I hope Jamo can overcome his persistent shoulder problems.

Geelong and Hawthorn are the only two clubs which have a list I'm envious of. Sure the Saints are travelling well but they don't have many quality kids coming through.

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There is no footy god