“HOPEFULLY we see a system-based side that plays for one another and really enjoy their footy, but also the hard work that goes with it.”
It may have been four months since Aaron Hamill returned to IKON Park, but his message very much remains the same.
Speaking to media on Tuesday afternoon alongside fellow assistant coaches Tim Clarke and Ash Hansen, Hamill detailed what approach the Blues will take to their football in 2022.
Overseeing the backline and also Carlton’s team defence, it’s been no secret that the Blues want to play a high-pressure, combative style of footy — as Hamill ascertained, just like any other team in the competition.
He said a big way in which to achieve that was “connectedness and communication” across every line.
“We want to play a really combative style of footy… be elite in the contest. We need to win our fair share of the ball and be able to defend strongly when it’s our turn,” Hamill said.
“The hope will be an 18-man system, the relationship with ball-in-hand and team defence and vice versa. We need to have good defensive integrity behind the ball.
“We’re embedding a new game plan, a new system and new environment. We want to be a better side in Round 11 as opposed to Round 1, and [better in] Round 23 and so on.”
Hamill was announced as the first new assistant coach under Michael Voss late last year, with the new staff spending as much time on the track as they have off it instilling the new game plan into the playing group.
WHO PLAYS WHERE? Voss on key 2022 positional changes
With just under a month until the traditional Thursday night clash with Richmond, Hamill said there has been a key focus on “using our time wisely” throughout the summer.
“That’s the art of coaching, and ‘Vossy’ has been very good at it,” he said.
“What are they ready for, are we ready to progress to the next level, what do we stand for, what are the non-negotiable, how far do we deviate from things as opposed to adding different layers.
“As coaches, we want everything right now and we want an A-class system, which is what we’ll hopefully get to. We’re really methodical in our approach, as well as pushing the envelope.”
Part of the pre-season process has been welcoming back past greats of the Carlton Football Club, a number of who Hamill played with in the late 1990s.
With the likes of Gleeson, Kernahan and McKay on Royal Parade, Hamill said he would also project his story of his experiences at the Club — but it was up to the new generation to make their own mark.
“It’s been really good in terms of seeing what the place means to them — it just feels like yesterday I was here,” he said.
“I’ve got a really good understanding of what the jumper means, what it represents and who it represents. The expectations of not only the members, but the hundreds of thousands of supporters around the country.
“That was part of the lure of coming back, I feel there’s unfinished business — for me personally, but more importantly the playing group and the Club.”
