IT WILL be a clash of the goalkicking titans when Charlie Curnow and Harry McKay take on Tom Hawkins and Jeremy Cameron on Saturday night. 

Curnow (50 goals), Cameron (46) and Hawkins (43) currently occupy the first three positions on the leaderboard, while the reigning Coleman Medallist McKay (36) isn’t too far behind despite having missed three games following knee surgery. 

The resurgence of the key forward has been a talking point this season, with tall targets being more prolific in front of goal compared to previous season. There'll be no better evidence of that than on Saturday night.

For McKay, he has always admired the way Cameron and Hawkins have gone about their game, studying their strengths while also being cautious not to compare Curnow and himself to the Cats’ duo. 

“Jeremy and Tom are the best in the league in my opinion and the work they do together, they’re quite different. The combination is really strong, they’ve played really good football together for a couple of years now,” McKay said.  

“I often watch Tom and Jeremy and pick parts of their game that they’re doing well and sit back down and acknowledge some of the things they’re doing really well.

“We don’t really compare too much: it’s a bit hard to compare because we’re all really different.” 

What McKay has really enjoyed in 2022 is playing alongside Curnow, who has put together a massive season after his extended stint on the sidelines. 

Playing the most footy that they ever have together, McKay relishes the energy that Curnow brings to the group and to his footy. 

“It’s been awesome, playing with Charlie is so much fun and the amount of energy he brings - to not only the forward line, but to the whole Club and the whole 17 people who are out on the ground - is really amazing,” he said. 

“For him to be back playing football, be healthy and have a smile on his face is really great to see. 

“Knowing Charlie for a few years now, it’s really disappointing when someone has a long time out of the game. 

“To his credit, the amount of work he’s done to get back, it’s no coincidence he’s having a good year with the amount of work he puts in: we all love playing with Charlie.”

As well as having the dynamism of Curnow by his side, McKay was quick to credit the rest of his forward line-up, contributing the team’s success to all the surrounding players under the watchful eye of Ash Hansen. 

“The rest of the forwards play their role awesomely. We couldn’t do our role and get the launch at the footy and take marks without the roles that all the other boys do,” he said. 

"A lot of boys are having great years. Corey Durdin, Matt Owies, we know what Jack Silvagni brings out every week, Zac Fisher is in career-best form. So as much as people talk about me and Charlie, those guys are having awesome years and we really want to highlight that."

Carlton has had 20 individual goalkickers in the 2022 season, with seven individuals recording double digits for majors after 17 rounds. Players such as Patrick Cripps (17), Zac Fisher (15) and Corey Durdin (12) have all posted career-best numbers already.

Not relying on any one player is a big strength of the Carlton line-up, with McKay noting that it makes it that much harder for opposition teams to get their defence together. 

“When you have a couple of key forwards who provide a threat in the air and on the ground, defenders have to pay a bit more respect and have a bit more of a challenge to defend,” he said. 

“I think when you can have a couple of really dangerous forwards, it’s really challenging for opposition teams.” 

With the team showing its best form line since his time at the Club, McKay is enjoying the good times with his teammates. However, he's conscious that the Blues still have much more to achieve: in his own words, getting through hard times "makes it a bit more special when you get that success, not that we’ve had any yet".

However, referencing the difficulties of earlier in his career meant McKay had the gratitude to acknowledge the position which the side is in right now.

“It’s really nice at this time of the year to be playing some important games and being alive – it’s a really good feeling,” he said.  

“Since Round 1, we’ve built really nicely and confidence is a really important part of the group and I think that’s building really strong every week. 

“Results like the weekend where we could be challenged but put our foot down and get results, that builds confidence: I feel like the group is in a really good spot.”