The Blues’ defence has come under fire after Friday night’s 52-point loss to Sydney in the key area letting down Michael Voss’ side.
Carlton conceded 117 points to the Swans in the SCG defeat, which could see the 6-4 Blues drop out of the top eight by the end of Round 10.
It marked another big score put on Carlton in a concern for Voss and company, having given up an average score of 95.4 points from Rounds 5-9. The Blues are ranked 17th in the AFL in points against during that four-week period, with North Melbourne the only club that’s given up more.
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Could Warner have a case to answer? | 00:37
AFL greats on Fox Footy were critical of the Blues’ defensive shortcomings, suggesting they had to improve to become a serious premiership threat.
“This is not a profile that’s going to take you into the top four and beyond,” triple-premiership Lion Jonathan Brown highlighted.
Melbourne legend Garry Lyon added: “This football club we all expect and hoped for Carlton’s fans’ sakes they could go really deep.
“We saw it last year with Port Adelaide when they were in a good frame of mind and form, but were defensively always a worry.
“That’s the watch on them now and it’s a concern.”
Could Warner have a case to answer? | 00:37
Adding to Carlton’s woes was that Jacob Weitering suffered a corky to his leg that caused the star defender to be subbed out of the game, adding to a lengthy injury list at Ikon Park.
Herald Sun reporter Jon Ralph said Weitering had “a lot of work ahead of him” to try and get up for Carlton’s clash with Gold Coast in eight days’ time next Saturday at Marvel Stadium.
Despite this, Blues and Crows great Eddie Betts believes his ex-club “can’t blame injuries” and need to work out how to stop opposition sides from scoring.
Four-time premiership Hawk Jordan Lewis meanwhile thinks Carlton is still too reliant on Weiteirng in defence, calling for others around him to step up.
“I think without Weitering, they look a totally different side behind the ball – there’s no structure or communication,” Lewis said.
“I would be challenging the players more experienced behind the ball: ‘What are you doing?’ You need to communicate and be the leader down there.”
Source Agencies
