Here's another report on the Blues' spending strategy over the last 5 years, for those who may ask again how anyone would know.
No one knows the exact numbers, and no one has stated that either, but the strategy taking advantage of the cap rules is common knowledge.
The answer is simple: its either stated directly by Carlton people in private conversations, or, Carlton people tell journos they trust in the media, and player managers certainly talk and know what the dollars are on offer for a player(s) in their stable. Managers talk to each other too.
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The Carlton list management team used the opportunity in the early part of the rebuild to spend below the salary cap during the lean years of 2018 and 2019. The Blues banked money for future acquisitions and also front-ended contracts to create space under the cap down the track.
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The Blues have been active players during the free agency and trade periods over recent seasons. They added Adam Cerra, George Hewett and Lewis Young to their list in 2021 after acquiring Adam Saad, Zac Williams and Lachie Fogarty at the end of 2020. They also recruited Jack Martin and Mitch McGovern while making unsuccessful bids for Stephen Coniglio and Dylan Shiel.
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They have done so while selecting players at the top end of the draft, a process that began in 2015 when they took Jacob Weitering, Harry McKay and Charlie Curnow with picks one, 10 and 12, then Sam Petrevski-Seton at pick six in 2016. Paddy Dow and Lochie O’Brien arrived via picks three and 10 and then they used pick No.1 to get Sam Walsh in 2018.
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Industry sources suspected, however, they might struggle to compete for talent at season’s end as they have star forwards McKay and Curnow becoming free agents at the end of 2023.
Who cares what they suspect? They've been masked sources all along, and probably made up characters who don't even exist. They are made up rumours to create click bait. Typically baseless stories from a disappointing media circus.
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But club sources said the Blues had maintained enough flexibility to keep their options open when trade time arrived.
We are living in a different era to the last 3 decades of salary cap management. SOS sorted the mess. Austin has flexibility at his disposal, and not every top 20 recruit will turn out to be starts, as we found with SPS, but Austin is adding value to the list, and I look forward to seeing his next play come seasons end, and Carlton is an undisputed Destination Club.
I bet Harry McKay and Charlie Curnow stay at Carlton, and will be paid handsomely. Bonafide stars Cripps, Weitering and Walsh have paved the way forward: The next Golden era for Carlton.