Charlie Curnow.Credit score: AFL Pictures
The issue because it pertains to McKay is evident – he isn’t changing. He isn’t changing from instantly in entrance. He isn’t changing from the boundary. On Sunday he handed a ball backwards outdoors 50 to George Hewitt to take the shot. Kindly, it was advised by Michael Voss, that he wished to convey his teammate into the sport. Extra cynically it regarded like he didn’t wish to take the kick, himself.
Carlton has a couple of issues in attacking. McKay’s accuracy is one, however extra broadly it’s how they assault and who they assault via. It’s the place their assault is concentrated, how they convey the ball inside 50, how they hold it inside and, then, who scores.
“Our front-half sport, and effectivity round our front-half sport, wants to enhance,” Voss stated after the loss to the Saints.
“I feel the strategy truly seems to be fairly OK, however you’ve acquired to complete your performs, and so they’re incomplete [at the moment].”
Carlton have two of the perfect marking tall targets within the competitors but they rank fifteenth for marks inside 50.
Carlton is commonly gradual in how they transfer the ball into assault. On Sunday that was magnified by the very fact Adam Saad didn’t play, and that they have been taking part in St Kilda who play with a extra defensive wall than every other group.
St Kilda don’t care in case you have a mountain of the ball, so long as it’s up the sector in areas that don’t damage them. That is what occurred on Sunday when Carlton had 446 disposals – the second most of any group this 12 months – however nonetheless solely kicked 60 factors.
The Saints hand over essentially the most disposals of any aspect within the competitors. Ross Lyon takes the view that you could fiddle round with the ball like a soccer aspect shuffling it round midfield, switching again and throughout and again once more and looking for gaps to assault the purpose, but when he makes positive no gaps are there then all that motion is for nothing.
That was what occurred on Sunday. Carlton tried to go quick, however in addition they went gradual and in the long run they went nowhere.
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Two weeks in the past, earlier than they have been belted by Adelaide after which misplaced to the Saints, former Brisbane and Collingwood premiership coach Leigh Matthews stated he was troubled by the Blues’ reliance on the 2 key forwards and the shortage of quite a lot of purpose kickers. Historical past was towards groups reliant on too few to kick a lot.
The Blues have an expansion drawback. Small ahead Matt Owies began the 12 months brightly with six targets in three video games, however he has been out since spherical three. Corey Durdin has six targets in 5 video games, which is a strong output.
Jesse Motlop has kicked a purpose a sport in his six video games this 12 months, which is serviceable, whereas Zac Fisher has solely kicked two targets for the 12 months regardless of taking part in each sport.
They plainly want extra targets out of their midfield.
The most important drawback – on paper not less than – is that the dynamic Jack Martin is out. On paper, he must be a solution to the issue, however getting him on the sector has confirmed extra of an issue than a solution. He has solely performed one sport this 12 months after simply 12 video games final 12 months, and 11 the 12 months earlier than.
The priority is that Carlton has misplaced two successive video games they anticipated to win and one of many causes of these losses was that one in every of their nice property was a legal responsibility. However Harry McKay has a Coleman Medal. He clearly is aware of learn how to kick targets. Now he must remind himself how he did it.
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