I don't think we're implementing that much of a team defence just yet. Really impressed with most of our back six though.

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29 different attributes,
And only 7 that you like;
20 ways to see the world,
Or 20 ways to start a fight.

And folks tell me does buzaaaah's avatar look 'The Dominator.'

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1945 - End of round 3 Carlton was last.

Last round Carlton made the final four for the first time.

Eventual premiers.

That's what I'm talking about!

Sure we are. Maybe your idea of team defence is different to mine. The press and the forward pressure, the tackling and chasing inside our forward 50, the way we bring the ball into our fifty with an eye on making sure we dont get killed on the rebound, the tight contested play. All these things are protecting the back six in a way we havent seen over the last few years.
They are playing well though.

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"You are being watched. The government has a secret system. A machine that spies on you every hour of every day. I know because I built it." - Finch

My Friday night.

Get to Fox and Lion, say g’day to some Carlton people. Meet up with a mate. Starts p@issing down. A lot of Carlton people around.

Go to the German Beer barn 100m up the footpath to get some cover from the rain. Have some stupid Weissbier.

Go to the ground, poncho on. Continues pouring down. Missus finds a café in the ground and watches the wedding.

The mate is a horrendously fast drinker and we are going at two schooners a quarter pace.

For two and a half quarters abuse the crowd, the umpires. Spit and beer flying everywhere.

Next thing Eddy goes bang, Juddy is Juddy and what a couple of finds in Curnow, Duigan and Laidler. Ellard and Armfield have the right attitude. Ah and Jamo, welcome back to what you showed in your first half a dozen games.

Games over, reconcile with abused Swans supporters, and being 38 and all, head down to the fence and high five the players as they head to the change rooms. Hang it on Walker about Echuca United being not as good as the Cobram Tigers. Not that Walker probably ever had anything to do with Echuca United, but remember, it was a fast pace.

Head undercover to walk out of the ground and Barry O’Farrell walks past. Let him know he is wearing the wrong colours. Likewise Dimetriou, couldn’t resist letting him know that even keeping us out of the draft for 3 years could not hurt us.

Walk past a crowd around a door, look in, and bugger me, it is the changerooms. Missus and I push our way through and head down the stairs. Say g’day to Diesel. Warnock gives the missus the up and down (she was made up for the wedding, being a pom and all).

Hit the Captain Cook Hotel, across the road from the ground, and meet up with the mate again. Get up on a stool and get the whole pub singing the theme song. Bouncers do not take kindly to me being on the stool, but get away with a warning. Sing the song about 20 more times. A lot of Carlton people in the pub. Got stopped from ordering a round of JD's by the Captain Cook closing.

Not a bad night.

If we beat St Kilda on Monday night, our season is set up beautifully.

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Yazz - The only way is up

Every Monday, I presume because I am a paid up CFC Member, I get an email from Coach Brett Ratten.

I think part of todays email is worth posting on TC to help clarify some questions raised here.

.........................On Friday night I got a first-hand look at what was a great team contribution, from my vantage point on the interchange bench. You would have noted I've been taking my place in the dugout rather than the coach's box since last season's Round 19 match against Essendon* at the MCG.

My reasoning for doing so is fairly obvious. Whether it's a warm night, or, as was the case in the first quarter of Friday night's match torrential rain, the capacity to talk to the players and gauge their general mood from down on the boundary is vital.

The decision to vacate the box for the bench is based on a need to know more about how the players are generally feeling in the cut and thrust of the contest. That way, I'm in a better position to ask questions face-to-face about what's working and what's not and to generally assist the players in being the best they can possibly be on the day.

In addition, because I get the opportunity to get to them more during the match itself, I don't have to deal with as many issues when we gather at the quarter-time, half-time and three quarter-time breaks.

I have to admit that when I see the players slug it out as they did against the Swans; it's sometimes hard not to get caught up in the emotion of it all. But having watched them come off the ground with a genuine steeliness in their eyes, it's my view that the players have taken another significant step in this crucial aspect of their game........................................

Regards Cazzesman

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Ricky Gervais - “Everyone has the right to hold whatever beliefs they want. And everyone else has the right to find those beliefs f***ing ridiculous.”

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#DonTheStash

More on this, complete with some ridiculous comments:

http://www.foxsports.com.au/afl/afl-premiership/the-afl-apologises-to-sydney-swans-for-interchange-mistake-against-carlton-at-the-scg/story-e6frf3e3-1226048367616

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THEY LIKE TO SEND UP!!!!!!!!

Until each team plays each other the same number of times, the AFL, as a fair dinkum competition, cannot be taken seriously.

He (Mr Swann) said the honour and pride associated with the club's traditional navy blue jumper was priceless.

But the end result will still be: Tell your story walking, sook.

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And so while others miserably pledge themselves to the pursuit of ambition and brief power, I will be stretched out in the shade, singing.

Does this mean we get 6 points deducted from our final score? (Sorry if it was in the link...I'm too lazy to click it).

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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."

No we don't. 5hit happens - they need to get over it.

The way some are carrying on, one would think the game was decided because of it.
The reality is, an error was made when we had the momentum.
It cost 6 points.
There were ozens of poor decisions made on the day, any one of which may have contributed to the final margin in some way but they aren't all going to be reviewed.

Sorry for the mark not paid to Walker
Sorry for the holding the ball paid against Duigan
Sorry for not paying a couple of bloody obvious deliberate oob in our F50

Get the picture?

We win, you lose.

Next time the shoe may be on the other foot. Get over it.

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Let slip the Blues of war (with apologies to William Shakespeare) (and Sir Francis Bacon, just in case)

Also, sorry for allowing Jetta to throw the ball to set up a goal in the 3rd.

onya BS.

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Everyone looks good in Navy Blue

I though Brett had emailed me personally! Just shows, we discuss it on TC and we get a response!

I understand the thinking behind talking directly to players. To me it seems like we have decided on a division of duties to use the various coaches strengths. Presumably Richardson or someone is better with the match day overview and responding quickly to match day issues, oppo moves and tactics, Ratts see his strengths as being more the one to one encouragement.

I don't mind the idea of a coaching collective if we can get it to work. That is a new approach and I am a fan of new ideas and doing things differently.

I think the effort in midfield is highly inconsistent. Both ends are doing well though.

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29 different attributes,
And only 7 that you like;
20 ways to see the world,
Or 20 ways to start a fight.

Well done Brett Ratten ... another great win. Well coached.

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I am as mad as hell and I'm not going to take it any more!!!

Agreed. Take last year's final at Homebush for example. I went with a bunch of Sydney supporters so ended up in a Swans reserved area.

Being a cut-throat final I expected the swans crowd to be fired up, making lots of noise but they were mostly watching "nicely" throughout the game, only making noise during the obvious moments... cries of "Baaall", a swan's goal or mark, disputing a blues free kick.

Contrast to myself and I was the lone voice hollering (for the blues) in a sea of red & white. I was riding every tackle, every kick, every bit of play loudly and there were many moments in our vicinity where all you could hear was my excited voice yelling, the rest of the crowd was that mute!

I remember one bit of play where the ball was kicked high about 35 metres out from the swans goal .... I could tell Goodes had his name written all over it and yelled out frustratingly "Goodes has got this!" a few secs before he snaffled it ... after the huge roar from what was a great pack mark, a couple of puzzled swans supporters asked me how I knew he would take it and looked at me like I was some sort of genius ... they haven't developed a sense of what's about to unfold in the play... there was no rising scream in anticipation of a big mark about to be taken or a running goal about to be kicked.


And speaking of being "too nice", I didn't hear any banter at all from them against our players.... really wierd. During the tense final moments of the game, when Dennis-Lane had the shot from the boundary right pocket near where I was sitting (I think that was the Army tackle), I yelled out "OUT ON THE FULL!!!... KICK IT OUT ON THE FULLLL!!" to put him off.... first time all game I had yelled anything remotely anti-Swans and it was a pretty inoffensive thing to say, yet I heard an angry voice behind me yell "How bout a bit of bloody respect mate!!"

Yep.... they're way too nice..... and it's gonna take a bloody long time before these people "get" footy!

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When Dick became President, it was as if everyone at Carlton came out of the hailstorm and into the sunshine - Stephen Kernahan

YARRAN!!





.

I had a very similar experience at the final. I happened (don't know how) to be seated in the middle of the Sydney players and families. At half time one of the player's mothers, who was sitting behind me, said "You've obviously come up from Melbourne". We had a good chat. It was clear that the fact that I knew the game and was loud meant I wasn't a local.

Seen the game on the replay - terrific win in the conditions - no chance in hell would we have won a game set up with these circumstances in the past 10 seasons.

And now after 6 rounds would have to say that Curnow, Duigan and Laidler are our best group of recruits (going on to play regular senior games) since Camporeale, Clape and Manton in 1995.

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"Hence you will not say that Greeks fight like heroes but that heroes fight like Greeks"?

Winston Churchill