06-18-2015, 10:06 AM
Quote:CARLTON interim coach John Barker has issued his players with a “licence to take the game on”, according to midfielder Dennis Armfield.
The Blues have showed some seriously competitive signs since Barker took the reins in the wake of Mick Malthouse’s sacking last month, taking it to Sydney and Adelaide before last weekend’s bye.
And while Armfield insists the team’s freedom wasn’t stifled under Malthouse, he says there’s a different feeling among the group.
“We’ve definitely been given a licence to take the game on a bit more,” he told RSN today.
“We’re not going to be punished for mistakes. We’ve still got to improve on our skills and our kicks, which we can improve on through the second half of the year, but there’s been a definite licence to take the game on and play to your natural instincts.
“That’s what we’re good at so hopefully we can do that.
“It definitely wasn’t stifled (under Malthouse), it’s just that Mick had a different game plan and we played to that. Mick still encouraged us to take the game on — it was just a different strategy and a different way about it.”
The Blues fell just nine points short of the Crows in Round 10, and Armfield is hopeful they can build on that momentum against Port Adelaide on Saturday.
“We were disappointed in the loss against Adelaide, but it’s a step in the right direction,” he said.
“We’ve just focused on being more competitive in games and that’s where we turned the corner in that last quarter against Sydney (in Round 9).
“It’s just crucial that we continue that after the bye against Port Adelaide this week.”
Armfield also says he was as shocked as anyone else at Tuesday’s news that star midfielder Dale Thomas will miss the rest of the season following a shoulder reconstruction.
“I was just as shocked as most of the public — I thought he was close to coming back after the bye,” he said.
“The shoulder was just a bit too much for him.”
http://www.news.com.au/sport/afl/carlton...7403829764
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