The first match of Round Two was filled with trepidation, fear, and uncertainty. This was because Carlton was going up against a previous season Premiership team finalist, the Western Bulldogs.

They lost in round one and wanted to show the footy world that they are, well, a significant contender in season 2022. With their opposition team’s senior coach out of the mix due to AFL Covid Protocols, other coaches out, two players out, the Bulldogs probably figured that Carlton would not be the same team they were against Richmond. They were wrong.

This is not the same team it was in previous seasons. Throughout the game, Carlton was tested, brought to the possibility of being on the brink of losing. They did not capitulate as they would have done in the past, and this all comes down to one thing both on the field and off – DEPTH!

One of the most significant aspects that makes a successful team is depth in their playing group and, as we have seen, depth in the coaching ranks. Carlton came up against a team that most believed would beat them soundly, given their coach would not be in the box. The depth of their coaching team was astounding. Sitting on the bench, I saw Carlton stalwart and AFLW coach Kade Simpson and watched as he advised players coming off the field. I saw how the club rallied together, came out on top, how each allowed the other to do what they did best, both on the field and off. But I also saw how a senior coach allowed those that were placed in charge of steering the game, allowing them to do just that.

This is depth! Depth from all aspects of the club and the team. It was probably one of the most impressive sights in Round Two. But I was to be proven that this, for me, was the second most inspiring sight to see in Round Two. For that came the next night.

I sat glued to my TV screen watching the game between Sydney and Geelong in Sydney. The sheer excitement emanated from the TV screen as “gobsmackingly” watching a player creep slowly towards a major achievement in the game, reaching 1000 goals in a career. The excitement brewed to a “froth” when Buddy Franklin took a mark in the fourth quarter, and on the sixth minute of the game, as he sat on 999 goals, we watched the ball sail through the air and blow apart the air in the goalposts and watched as a crowd swarmed the field.

But what was more astounding was the way Buddy handled the swarm. And what was even more impressive was how after many minutes, the call was made for spectators to please leave the field so the game could continue. Watching this as everyone (except one) respectfully left the field was something that has been talked about around the world. There was no fighting, no demonstrations, no flares, nothing—just an excited group of fans leaving the field to resume the game after celebrating an incredible achievement.

This is the depth of what the essence of this game – footy, has. A depth that permeates throughout the code and what makes it such a unique environment. I don’t suggest for one moment that this happens all the time, but when there is a need, the depth of the substance of what Aussie Rules is all about does come to the fore when needed. We also saw in an interview with Sam Docherty, how the footy world, from all team supporters, players, administrators, came together to raise money for the Peter Mac Cancer Foundation.

We saw depth at the Carlton game, and again after Buddy kicked his 1000th goal. I love this game and love what can be achieved when the word depth becomes a part of the vocabulary.

#GOBLUES

#CONGRATSBUDDY

P.S The image below is one the best tweets I’ve seen in a while!

This time next week, I will be getting my gear out of the cupboard, sorting what I will be taking with me and what to wear. I will take a peek at the weather app to find out if I need to take a raincoat or not. Given the sheer unpredictability of Melbourne weather, a raincoat will be packed. I will make sure that I have my digital ticket ready, along with my parking confirmation. I will make sure that I have prepared some snacks to pack and that my drink bottle will be filled with water and kept in the fridge until ready to go.

I cannot remember feeling the emotion of both sheer excitement and bloody trepidation. Is it because over the past two years, we in Victoria have been messed around in going to watch a sport that is the very lifeblood of who we are? Is it because of what our club has gone through last year and in previous years, it finally seems to all be coming together, and we are not sure what to make of that? It could be one or the other, or just both.

All I know is that right now, I am exceedingly emotional about the prospect that next week, I will be at the G watching the Blues in their new feel, new look and a new mindset. I’m not going to go over what has led us to where we are now, as it is time to draw a line in the sand, sorry the footy field and step over that to make 2022 a year that we Carlton supporters will look back with satisfaction that this time we have got it right and we have the tools to be successful.

I have missed the game that I love so very much and would make social plans around a match. I have missed the hype leading into a game, a big game, which, this time next week, it will be.

Because it is this match next week, where we have to make our mark on the game itself. We have to show that the ‘horribilis annus’ that was is no more. That we are going to be the club that we all want it to be and know it can be.

The game next week is an opportunity to show the footy world that Carlton is back and back with a vengeance that should hopefully obliterate the past years of gloom.

We must never forget this past because, in the end, what pushes us down, gives us a chance to rise again with a determination that will leave the footy world gasping for breath and feeling scared. That is what I am nervous and excited about, as I believe we have the talent to do just that. We just need the belief that we can. We need to settle our nerves and excitement and show what we can become. I need to calm my nerves and excitement.

This time next week, I will be decked out in navy blue, my flag in hand, my backpack on, hoping that when I wake up on Friday I will be unable to speak due to losing my voice chanting, screaming and singing the song that starts…we are the Navy Blues!

#TheTimeIsNow #GoBlues

Dear Mr Voss

Today I read in the Herald Sun an article written by Robbo. I read it with interest and gained a bit of respect for you and what you have gone through and achieved. I must say that I was impressed with your candour and your honesty.

I would have to say, Mr Voss, that I have been a bit sceptical in the past months when it comes to the progress of the Carlton FC and what transpired last year. It left me reeling as I felt that once more, the club with probably one of the richest histories in the game went down the path that it had gone down for the past ten years with regards to coaches.

I felt dismayed that what happened last year has the potential to happen again. I’m not going to mince words on this, and it is still a fear that I have and a sense of no real confidence in this respect.

However, the article has given me a small step in hoping that things have changed and that you are the person to lead this. I greatly admire those who pull themselves out from the depths of despair, admit their failings and failures, and do something about them. I have great respect and admiration for what you have achieved since you were fired from the Brisbane Lions as a coach.

You articulated what you felt and how it made you feel, but you decided not to give up and instead swallowed your pride and took on the role at Port Adelaide under Ken Hinkley. Given what Port’s players have said about you and who you were as captain of the Brisbane Lions during their three Premierships, I am starting to believe that you may be the hope that Carlton has been looking for since Brett Ratten.

Yet you will, of course, understand why I have some trepidation regarding the administrators of Carlton FC because we have gone down this path far too many times in the past ten years. I have seen social media ablaze with disturbing and insulting comments directed at previous people from Carlton and those still at the club. I have no respect for those who believe in a cause and then disregard that cause to suit their agendas.

You can understand that some cannot see past what has transpired over ten years and firmly believe that words will not satisfy unless they are backed up by action.

Over the past months, social media has been full of those who say if you disagree with what has gone on at the club or see the changes with some doubt, you are not real supporters. They have been called names and had attacks on them because of their scepticism. I am sure that you can understand, Mr Voss, how some have come to this point of whether they believe or not because you have had to pick yourself up and start again but have done so with support and action. This is what I got from the article and what has given me that slight glimmer of hope that it will be different this time.

After reading the article, I have gained some hope, and I know that you will accept that this hope comes with a bit of doubt as well. As you have done so in the past, I know that you will be fighting and showing what you can achieve by sheer tenacity, and Carlton will be great again. After reading the article and what you have gone through, your motivation to not fail again spurs you on and given your playing history, I believe that it can be done.

The excitement you are showing with every interview indicates that you will not let this opportunity fail you again. That you have learnt what went wrong and not make the same mistakes again. I have gained more respect for you from your honesty, but I am sure you will allow me to harbour a little bit of doubt.

But I congratulate you on this article and what you have done to get yourself back into a sport you love. I have the utmost respect and admiration for that, and I look forward to seeing you succeed because I believe those who come from the bottom, shake off the past and pursue success with a renewed vigour and understanding will achieve what they want. I hope you do too.

Debby
Carlton FC Member

It seems that panic has set in with some supporters. The only player who can get us that winning feeling and fire on the field is out for about four weeks. He will miss the first two weeks of the 2022 season as he recovers from a syndesmosis ankle injury that requires surgery.

The rate of doom and gloom bombarded social media, and some have said it will take three months for him to recover fully. For them, let’s throw in the towel now because, without this player, we are nothing. Carlton will never succeed. I call it ‘bullshit’.

If we are a team that relies solely on one player and one player only, then we will never be a successful side. If any sports team pins their success on one player only, they will not succeed.

If a team has no depth in their playing field of players, they do not deserve success. No team can achieve what they want without depth in their playing group, no matter where or what. Will the absence of Sam Walsh create a hole in the side? For sure. But is that hole unfixable…nope! I can assure you that Sam Walsh being Sam Walsh, knows that no-one is indispensable and will support the team from the sides until he can get fit and ready to take the field again.

Any logical sports supporter of any sport knows that even great players will suffer an injury at some point in their career. It is how they attack their recovery, and their focus will determine how they will come back to the sport and the team with a vigor and strength that will make the hole they left one that only enhances their success.

Stop with the panic. Understand that if we are a club that only believes that without a great player such as Sam Walsh, we are nothing, what does that say about the rest of the team and players?

We have to have depth in our playing group to allow that it is inevitable that top players will get injured, and it is up to the club to ensure that we have this depth that will, for now, fill in the void left. Sure it will be hard to fill, but that makes a great team even more incredible. The knowledge that a fringe player or new recruit can step up and step in and try and be that player who, for now, play the role that Sam Walsh plays. Without a doubt, it would be what he would want. He is only 21 years old. He is a team player and not out for his own selfish needs. This is shown in how he has re-committed to the club for another four years and not sought out other clubs, more successful clubs. He believes in this club and the players, and we should as well.

Also, it is not better to have this sort of injury now rather than in the middle of the season?

Stop running around as if the world has come to an end because one of our players has an injury, which means that we will falter at the bottom once more. Sure, he will be missed, but does this not give others a chance to show why we choose them to represent our club? That we can be a successful team even if a star player is out injured for a short while. That we have depth in our playing group. That is what makes a successful team, not focusing on one player to ensure that success.

Speedy recovery Sam Walsh! Looking forward to you burning up the field when you get back!

#GOBLUES!

https://www.carltonfc.com.au/news/1060138/surgery-to-sideline-walsh-for-season-s-start

This week’s game is the AFLW Carlton Respects match against Adelaide. The club will be doing a Walk for Respect and Equality before the game.

I applaud the club for this initiative, which is a vital message across the board in every facet of the game and our society as a whole. But the message of respect and equality has to be voiced by those who promote this and are seen to be doing so in every aspect of their being.

In the news this week, ex-Carlton AFLW player Tayla Harris and other AFL and AFLW players have stated the very toxic nature that is permeating social media. How the effect this has on the player mentally and how this affects their very being and their game. This can also translate to those players, coaches and others who in the past may have left to another club or just left the game altogether because the very toxicity of social media has left them broken, shattered and depressed.

I don’t blame them. But what should the Respect and Equality campaign really promote if it doesn’t promote this concept in every facet of the game and society, including social media? And should not the faces that are virulent on social media also promote this in its entirety and not just ones that suit them?
Respect means that no matter what, each person should be respected no matter who they are, even if you disagree with them. This is, of course, not relevant to those who use violence or aggression of any kind towards anyone.

There are many times that I might disagree with someone, but I will still respect them even if I think they are wrong. If they disagree with valid reasons that I may not agree with, I will respect their viewpoint. For is this not the pure underlying definition of respect? Is not respect one that must be encompassing everyone, male or female or gender fluid? Should the voice of the club’s respect and equality be stated by those that actually action those words and not just because it gets them in the spotlight? Should not respect and equality be one that no matter if someone disagrees, you can still respect their right to disagree? Should not respect be one that is not conditional based upon whether you agree with some or not?

These questions should be the underlying basis of what the respect and equality round must stand for and not just lip service. It should not be promoted by those who do not uphold this very concept of respect and equality; otherwise, the club is looking very hypocritical.

I have the utmost respect for those who rise from adversity and do so with integrity, humility, and respect, and I treat everyone equally. I have no respect for those who use social media to promote toxicity and believe that their words won’t hurt, or is that their aim? How can those people encourage the club’s message when they are not respectful at all?

I love the message of the Respect and Equality round and what it stands for, but it must stand for more than just a promotion purpose. It must ensure the integrity of the cause and those that are the faces and voices for this. Otherwise, the message will never get through, and it will be seen as nothing more than a marketing tool.

Too many lives have been lost, too many people are suffering because of the toxicity in our society where there is no respect or equality. Too many are voicing their lack of respect and equality on the pages of social media and want their words to get through to their intended target. For the club to mark this round to highlight the need for the message of respect and equality, it must look carefully in the social media pages and stamp out the toxicity that is running riot.

Respect and Equality…promote it, act it, speak it! Don’t just do it for some things and not others!

#GO BLUES!

Tomorrow night we see footy back on the fields and on our TV’s. Tomorrow night St Kilda v Richmond kick-off a tenuous AFLW season. I say tenuous, given the situation around the country with regards to the Omicron strain of COVID-19 and the significant rise of cases. Given last season was cut short due to the increase of COVID cases, I suspect that every club, every player, administrator, coach, supporter and the AFL mechanism as a whole will be crossing every finger in the hope that it doesn’t get cancelled again.

The competition has been growing steadily since the AFLW started as a viable and dynamic part of the AFL world. We are seeing skills and abilities grow with each and every season. We are seeing girls who once had nowhere to go to in terms of their footy goals to be able to, if lucky enough, get selected to play for a club in the AFLW world.

For Carlton, we have seen players move away from the Navy Blue and seek new teams and new environments. I’m not here to discuss their motivations or their seeming bitterness towards a club they started with. I want to concentrate on the upcoming season and the club’s possibilities currently in front of them.

One of the most significant things that came out so far has been the very emotional video by our very own Darcy Vescio. I applauded and shed tears with Darcy as they declared themselves to be non-binary.

The raw and deep-seated way they announced to the world who they want to be seen deserves our respect, admiration, and understanding. Yet it seems that some just do not get this and resort to sinking into a gutter of criticism and ridicule that is, well, simply, showing the level of empathy and understanding that some just do not have. Some people believe that it is better to voice a nasty side instead of saying nothing (and this includes our men’s team).

I am a huge, huge, huge supporter of someone being who they are and what they want to be seen as, so long as it does not hurt or affect others. Darcy should be recognized for giving a public voice to those who feel the same way and are too scared to say anything. I want to concentrate not on their statement, but on their skills in the field and their leadership in the team, and I sincerely believe that across the AFLW world, they are a force that every player wants to contain.

I am looking forward to seeing the growth in skills and general “grunt” on the field with familiar players and seeing how much they have developed over the year. I am also looking forward to seeing our newbies and what they will bring to the team.

Season 2022 begins this Friday, and I cannot wait. I cannot wait to see how the team is fairing and how much we have grown and become a better, stronger and more determined team. I believe this starts not with the game on Sunday but started with a fearless and determined player who began the year on their terms and their identification. The strength in their statement should be the start of voicing the team’s intention of being nothing but themselves on the field and off and putting their passion into the game they love and the team they represent.

Can’t explain it, but I do feel a tinge of excitement about this season in the AFLW. I just hope that it won’t be interrupted or cancelled this year.

#GOBLUES!

See link below for Darcy’s video.

“Five hundred twenty-five thousand six hundred minutes
Five hundred twenty-five thousand moments so dear
Five hundred twenty-five thousand six hundred minutes
How do you measure? Measure a year?” (Lyrics Seasons of Love, Rent)

Powerful words, and given the year we have had, they have a very significant meaning, especially as a Victorian and a Carlton FC supporter. So how do we measure 2021, given what has been played out in the media and on social media, regarding what has transpired at our club?

I can honestly say that I have learned a lot about many who spout words that carry no real meaning. I have learned that some steep to online name-calling, bullying on social media then turnaround and insist on equality and respect. I have learned that if you have a different view or opinion, you are not a true Carlton supporter.

The most wonderful thing about our society is that people can have differing views and opinions without being arrested, jailed or beaten up (in most cases). Yet, for some, the very difference is what irks them, and they cannot and do not accept this. They resort to a low that is similar to the low that we saw when protestors literally desecrated the Shrine of Remembrance in Victoria. I have no issue with anyone’s right to disagree, but it must be done with integrity and respect, any other way, and you are no better than the countries where speaking out could cost you your life.

Our club this year went through a significant overhaul, and some were excited about this; some were not. Some embraced it, some did not. Some were adamant that the club had got it right; some were skeptical. No matter what side you sit on or what you believe, it will take five hundred twenty-five thousand six hundred minutes to measure the success or failure of 2022.

As for me, I have been skeptical and hesitant, but it does not make me any inclined to not support a club I love. I don’t support a club based on a person or persons. I base it on the club as a whole. People come and go, but the foundation of what makes a club is the one that should be supported. It should also be nurtured and strengthened by a culture that includes everyone, no matter their views (regarding the club).

So for the last time in 2021, may the season be one of togetherness, happy times and a feeling of what the club and footy must stand for – community.
May 2022 measure our year that sees us close the door to the last ten years and open it anew with a sense of hope and promise of possibilities. May we embrace our differences with respect and understand that we all want the same thing – a successful club in the end!

Merry Christmas to all that celebrate it, and a happy, safe and keep well, New Year.

#GOBLUES!

Liam Jones has called time on his AFL career amid the issue he has had with his reluctance to get the COVID-19 vaccine. After the announcement and the release from the Carlton FC that neither will make no further statement on his decision, the huge dichotomy between supporters and the media makes me ask…what the hell is wrong with people?

I do not understand those that spout respect and the rights of people to choose the life that is for them, then do a 360 and berate and call him names that are anything but respectful. Let me be perfectly clear. I am fully vaccinated! It is my choice, my educated choice not based on conspiracy theories or those spouted on media platforms, but based on a discussion I have had with my GP, whom I have been a patient of his for over twenty years. He knows me. He knows my stance on medication, and he knows my medical history. It is his information and advice that it is the only one that I took on board. He went through the pros and cons, and I made my decision. It was not based on “following the sheep pack”, as some have said those vaccinated are doing.

I am pro-vaccination, but I respect everyone’s decision based on informative knowledge and not websites that promote one way or another, nor those so-called “experts” who are not. No matter who you are, everyone has the right to choose a path that is theirs and theirs alone. If it means not getting vaccinated, then it is their choice. It is also their choice to live in a way that is not steeped in violence but one that, for them, right now, is the only way they can live. It is their choice, and if that means they don’t mix in the community as they would have liked, then so be it. Yes, it would put others in the community in harm’s way, but then again, walking past a person who smokes puts others in harm’s way with the proliferation of secondary smoke inhalation.

But this is not the point of this, well, rant. The way some have treated Jones’s decision shows that they may talk the talk but do not walk the walk in terms of what it means to have respect. Is it based on their limited parameters of the definition of respect? That it is their definition and only theirs that is correct? Has anyone thought that maybe there is more to the story than just a reluctance to get vaccinated? Why should a person, no matter who they are, have to tell us their reasonings? If they want to walk away, then logically, there has to be more than what is being alluded to, doesn’t there?

Social media has become a place that does not “share the good” but displays a nastiness that borders on bullying, harassment and disrespect. Given what the world is experiencing now, shouldn’t we all have more compassion and empathy? Shouldn’t we work together to mend our world rather than fractionalize it even more with the vitriol others spout on social media? What is wrong with people?

I have been appalled by some who post sarcastic and bullying posts directed at our players and supporters on social media. I have chosen not to reply to their posts because I refuse to sink to their level.

I am a Carlton FC supporter, and while in the past year, the club has seen a fracture that I hope in time will mend, and even if I have been critical of how this year has transpired, I have not sunk to a level of name-calling. I have been criticized for my views, but I accept that others have different ideas, but on the whole, I have total respect for their opinions, as long as it is based on logic and not insults.

The tirade from others about Liam Jones’s decision is not respectful, and neither are others’ disregard for his decision. I disagree with it, but I accept it because it is his and his alone and to be honest, I think there is more to this than meets the eye, and whether this is revealed or not, makes no difference to me, and it shouldn’t to you. Accept it. Respect it and move on!

Good luck, Liam Jones!

#GOBLUES!