Voss led Carlton to the perfect start of their 2022 campaign in his first match in charge. (Image: @CarltonFC/Twitter)
For years the Carlton Football Club has endured rebuild after rebuild, replacing players and coaches, rinse and repeat until the a winning formula was discovered.
2022’s version of the Carlton list makeover feels very different than the those from past years just one match into the AFL season, breaking Richmond’s stronghold that’s existed since 2014.
The new man with the top job at the Blues, Michael Voss, has swiftly been able to incorporate the competitive values we saw from his playing days into his fresh looking Carlton midfield.
Voss’s system at the Blues has shown early on, that unlikely figures already existing within Carlton’s squad have the ability exceed expectations that previous coaches may have had for them.
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An older face with a new lease on life, Matthew Kennedy, has asserted himself as a pillar of Carlton’s midfield. Working alongside new recruit, George Hewett, the pair combined for a total of 25 contested possessions against the Tigers in round one.
Adam Cerra has seamlessly fitted right into the Carlton setup after his highly anticipated move from Fremantle, bringing 30 disposals and goal in his first run out.
Third-gamer, Corey Durdin, showed glimpses that he could be the long-term solution to Carlton’s struggles in the small forward department.
Durdin’s low centre of gravity allows him to be quick on his feet, complementing a tenacity that resembles Sydney’s Tom Papley, a man Carlton tried to recruit in 2020.
One that is less of a fresh face but has found himself in a fresh role is Mitch McGovern. The hole left by the retirement of Liam Jones was there to be filled and has provided an opportunity for McGovern to reignite his career with the Blues.
At the time of joining the club, Voss chose to view the squad with a clean slate and was highly impressed with McGovern’s abilities over preseason.
Voss highlighted the importance of McGovern to his squad after his team’s win on Thursday night:
“I think he’s just going to get better and better, he’s still got some things to work on with his craft. Very early days with what we saw through training, and that’s all we had at the time, we really liked what we saw,” he said.
“Some of the things he was able to provide, it’s a point of difference to your backline, when you can have someone who can intercept the ball and you’ve seen his ball use, he kicks the ball so well, he’s incredibly quick,
“So he’ll provide a handful for some opposition forward lines to be able to try and manage.”
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