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After the cooling off period, it's time for my thoughts on the match, and the thoughts of our season.
Firstly, a close loss in the finals will always hurt, particularly how it has happened for a second year in a row. We can play the blame game, but in the end, it does not change the result.
I thought the team showed great fight, particularly in the second half. To draw on a few positives (yes, there are plenty), Lachlan Henderson was outstanding for us yesterday. He is young, and stood up in a cut throat final to take a few contested grabs in front of goals. This alone makes me excited for next season. Reflecting on my initial reaction to the Fevola trade almost a year ago, the reaction I gave was “Lachlan who?”
Make no mistake though, he will only get better for us. So while he is still only young, I look forward to the improvement and upside to come.
Secondly, we must not forget that while Sydney have been underrated and down a bit over the last couple of seasons, that they still boast many seasoned finals performers in their team. The likes of Adam Goodes and Kennelly, prove invaluable to a team comprised of experienced-elder-statesmen, and young guns.
On the other hand, many of our players have not had the finals exposure or success that the Swans’ team has. Some of our players hadn’t even played in a final until yesterday. We’re a much younger side who must first learn what it takes to get over the line in the close cut throat finals. Sydney however, have been there and done that; in 2003 they lost a close one to the Lions at home, in 2004 they lost another final to St.Kilda, and then eventually in 2005, they managed to pinch victory at the death-knock against the Cats; who, at the time, were in the category of up-and-coming finals challengers.
What glares out at me the most though is where we can expect improvement to come from next season. Finishing seventh and eighth, playing in a final and going down narrowly two years in a row means the club need to take the next step forward in 2011. Whether the improvement is pushing for the top four, finishing higher on the ladder and gaining a home-final, or simply repeating the last two seasons’ efforts and winning a final, I’m not so sure. I’d like to think that improvement will be determined on whether we can win a final next year, and achieve a higher ladder position. The finals learning curve has been 2009-2010, which means 2011 has to be the year that Carlton begins to impose themselves as more than “making up the numbers” in the eyes of the broader AFL community.
Personnel wise, Ratten has said that we’ll be active during trade week. He recognised that we’re a tall defender short, so it will be interesting to see what comes of that. It stood out yesterday, as the likes of Jamison and Bower got caught behind a few times. I’m sure if the club can lure a tall defender, then he will complement our defensive unit, improving the likes of Jamo and Bower, so we’ll be in a much better position to take the next step in 2011.
At the start of the year, many were asking the questions of how far forward or backward we could go this year. Some raised the point that if we were going to have a bad year before a decade where we should be pushing for flags, then this would be it. If finishing eighth and narrowly losing a final is as worse as we may get for the next few years, then we have some incredibly exciting times ahead.
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Premierships: 1869, 1871, 1873, 1874, 1875, 1877, 1887, 1906, 1907, 1908, 1914, 1915, 1938, 1945, 1947, 1968, 1970, 1972, 1979, 1981, 1982, 1987, 1995.
"GIBBS."
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