Post Game passion: AFL 2021 Rd 6: Carlton vs Brisbane

[LP]

I've got no doubt that we have issues running both ways and most of what was said was spot on.

But.....

On both those clips....we had the ball....and we couldn't hit a teammate. The turnover created the issue. That issue can be papered over by gut running the other way, and ideally you fix both. However, first and foremost we need to make sure we hit our targets.

You don't need to defend if you constantly have the ball and can find a teammate.

So my biggest issue, and i called Cripps out for it last week, is finding a teammate rather than bombing long to the opposition. Give off the handball to a bloke in a better position and/or with better kicking skills.

We are winning the I50's but losing the game.....because we can't hit a target and kick it through the big ones.
Train it, train it, train it.

Wins will come off the back of it.

Yes, it's patently obvious our problem is using the football, it's hard to see how anyone can claim otherwise and keep a straight face!

Last weekend, at one stage of the replay you see a Carlton player with the ball in the midfield, I think it may have been Curnow, Doc or sMurph. Inside F50 directly behind the umpire standing beyond the mark is a 15m blob of clear space 35m out from goal ringed by three Carlton players, all the opposition are on the outside of this ring. We held and held the ball, then kicked it 40m over the back of the clear space to Betts who is one out against two opponents with a wall of opposition between Betts and the nearest team-mate. All we had to do was drop the ball in the space and have any one of three Carlton players run onto it!

This is not the first time I've seen us do this, it isn't a player problem, it's a coaching problem, but which coach?

Time and time again, you'll see several Carlton players guarding a zone within our F50, a zone that we seemingly can't kick into. It's like we have no idea how to be forwards, how to block and check opponents working together to create a mark and kick inside F50 for goal.

Good teams kick to that space, we kick to the players around it.