“YOU’VE only got to listen to that noise out there and realise how much passion is in there.”
Michael Voss insists he’s “not going to take the excitement away” from a Carlton fanbase which was resounding in their support for the football club on Sunday.
Over 66,000 people headed to the home of football on an overcast Sunday afternoon to watch the Blues burst out of the blocks, then have to grit their teeth and hold off a rampaging Hawks outfit.
Come game’s end, Carlton was ahead on the scoreboard by one point, recording its third consecutive win to start the 2022 campaign.
Speaking post-match, Voss said while the support was a major boost and the noise was electrifying, it was crucial that those inside the four walls of IKON Park back it up each week.
“What we have to do is understand what’s real and what’s not real,” Voss said.
“For us, the work starts again on Tuesday. We go about not trying to fluctuate in our emotions and read into it too much: we’ve got to turn up again and get the job done.
“I said to the boys to celebrate the wins: this game is really hard. Wins are really hard. We shouldn’t treat it as anything other than that and be able to enjoy it.
“But, at the same time, once we get back to work on Tuesday, we put our heads down and review it and move on.”
The Blues had to ring the changes at the selection table with three forced exclusions coming out of the back-line group alone.
Voss hailed the collective next-man-in approach from the playing group, which saw Jordan Boyd awarded his AFL debut and Lewis Young play his first game in the Navy Blue.
“‘Boydy’ was right up there in terms of Round 1 selection and so was ‘Youngy,” he said.
Backing up 2017 with another one five years later.
— Carlton FC (@CarltonFC) April 3, 2022
This guy was unbelievable yet again.
Sam Docherty, a deserved two-time David Parkin Medallist. 🙌#AFLBluesHawks pic.twitter.com/ATgw0DU9G9
“What we’ve tried to embrace is the next-man-in approach and the guys have really taken to it. This is where as teams, you need a squad.
“You need everyone playing well and pushing one another. Behind the scenes, we’re doing that.”
In what was a scrappy final three quarters after the Blues were at their efficient best in the opening half hour, Voss was quizzed whether he took an optimistic or pessimistic outlook on the game as a whole.
“I’m glass half full — no question,” he said.
“I’d much rather be learning with four points in the pocket than learning the other way right now.
“We understand we’re not the finished product. We’ve got things to work on… somehow, we found a way.”
