One immediately looks at the Carlton team and sees a club building itself with a combination of younsters & imports from other club. Its midfield appears to be getting better, but its defence is still weak and it lacks for enough genuine forwards.
Yet, a fundamental question still continues at Carlton.
Why does it spend so much of its energy & resources recruiting outside wingers & flankers, especially tall mediums?
The positional structure of Carlton looks like this:
How many taller-medium outsiders does a team need?
I thought we had problems at Richmond, but Carlton take the cake.
Clearly, until Carlton stops wasting so many picks on its tall outside wingers & flankers and spends more time on key midfielders & forwards, which it can turn into small & tall defenders anyway, oppositions will continue to exploit their lack of depth in these vital areas.
For 2009, Warnock, if fit, will be given every opportunity to walk into the 1st ruck role, given Kreuzer's younger age.
Waite may need to be dragged back to CHF given Carlton's hole there. Besides, Jamison at FB allows Thornton to come out to CHB, and Carlton have far too many 3rd tall options anyway.
Young Steve Browne must be elated that, as a youngster, he walks into the key small defender's role merely through lack of competition within his own club.
No doubt Carlton have picked up some great stars like Murphy, Gibbs & Kreuzer by way of finishing bottom, and Judd by trading early draft picks, but their Recruiting Dept really needs to have a tough look at the poor list structure they've developed over the last few years.
But again, it's a consequence of 60% of the Carlton list being 190cm or more 2-3 years ago. At Carlton they have alot more baggage to clear.
As far as the ladder, Carlton will improve because of Judd, and the development of Gibbs, Murphy and a couple of others but they'll still finish in the bottom half.
Yet, a fundamental question still continues at Carlton.
Why does it spend so much of its energy & resources recruiting outside wingers & flankers, especially tall mediums?
The positional structure of Carlton looks like this:
| B | Browne (20,180,13,4) | Jamison (22,193,21,0) | O'Hailpin (26,199,46,18) |
| Bower (21,192,24,2) | |||
| Hadley (25,190,47,12) | |||
| HB | Carrazzo (25,187,84,20) | Waite (26,194,106,107) | Scotland (182,84,159,52) |
| Johnson (23,188, 31,2) | Thornton (25,192,128,2) | Armfield (22,181,9,2) | |
| Houlihan (27,187,162,99) | Austin (20,193,5,0) | Pfeiffer (21,183,7,4) | |
| Hill (19,190,0,0) | |||
| C | Walker (22,190,81,30) | Gibbs (20,188,43,19) | Simpson (24,182,87,47) |
| Grigg (20,190,25,4) | Stevens (29,182,214,127) | Robinson (19,185,0,0) | |
| Bannister (26,190,65,15) | |||
| Anderson (20,188,9,0) | |||
| Russell (22,188,50,8) | |||
| Stanton (19,192,0,0) | |||
| HF | Fisher (24,192,91,118) | Yarran (18,180,0,0) | |
| Wiggins (26,187,103,32) | Hartlett (22,196,8,2) | Garlett# (19,180,0,0) | |
| Tiller (18,189,0,0) | |||
| Bentley# (21,187,21,6) | |||
| F | Kreuzer (19,200,20,13) | Fevola (28,191,164,486) | Betts (22,173,75,85) |
| Cloke (24,196,47,28) | Edwards (21,192,88,5,4) | Ellard# (20,177,1,1) | |
| R | Warnock (22,206,21,4) | Judd (25,189,155,153) | Murphy (21,180,57,32) |
| Hampson (21,201,12,2) | Bentick (23,184,68,13) | Joseph# (19,180,0,0) | |
| Jacobs# (20,200,0,0) | O'Keefe (18,188,0,0) | ||
I thought we had problems at Richmond, but Carlton take the cake.
Clearly, until Carlton stops wasting so many picks on its tall outside wingers & flankers and spends more time on key midfielders & forwards, which it can turn into small & tall defenders anyway, oppositions will continue to exploit their lack of depth in these vital areas.
For 2009, Warnock, if fit, will be given every opportunity to walk into the 1st ruck role, given Kreuzer's younger age.
Waite may need to be dragged back to CHF given Carlton's hole there. Besides, Jamison at FB allows Thornton to come out to CHB, and Carlton have far too many 3rd tall options anyway.
Young Steve Browne must be elated that, as a youngster, he walks into the key small defender's role merely through lack of competition within his own club.
No doubt Carlton have picked up some great stars like Murphy, Gibbs & Kreuzer by way of finishing bottom, and Judd by trading early draft picks, but their Recruiting Dept really needs to have a tough look at the poor list structure they've developed over the last few years.
But again, it's a consequence of 60% of the Carlton list being 190cm or more 2-3 years ago. At Carlton they have alot more baggage to clear.
As far as the ladder, Carlton will improve because of Judd, and the development of Gibbs, Murphy and a couple of others but they'll still finish in the bottom half.
