“THERE'S no substitute for match pressure.”
A newcomer to Carlton's coaching ranks this season, Matthew Skubis was more than satisfied with what he saw from his cohort in Saturday afternoon’s combined training session with St. Kilda.
Taking charge of the Blues' forward group for the upcoming AFLW season (and the second of 2022), Skubis was most pleased to see the team's response to opposition pressure.
“We’ve obviously had a couple of months training but we got a taste of match pressure today, which is so important, to get that match-like feeling,” Skubis said.
“I think being up forward, how we move on the ground is important and being predictable to each other. If we’re not predictable to each other it’s hard to know what to do in a split-second decision.”
While new in Navy Blue, Skubis has an extensive football past – most recently having spent time north with some familiar faces.
“I was really lucky, I was at the Brisbane Lions for over a decade where I worked with people like 'Vossy' [AFL Senior Coach Michael Voss] and Leigh Matthews – so I learned a hell of a lot.”
Skubis took up various coaching roles in Queensland, including assistant and development coach for the Brisbane Lions Academy, senior assistant coach for the Sherwood Magpies and assistant coach for the Yeronga Devils, while also pursuing his own playing career.
He’s also the latest link in the Carlton-Darebin connection, having spent a year as a senior assistant with the Falcons.
“We joke a bit that there are a lot of us here, but it’s been nice to come to a club where I know a few people,” he said.
“Back when I was at the Falcons, I took care of the midfield and the ruck so I’ve worked a lot with Elise O’Dea over the journey.
“I could name a whole host of other players – Darcy Vescio and Jess Dal Pos rolled through the club even when they weren’t playing, they did a lot of clinics. I was really fortunate to cross paths with those players.”
On the wider forward group, Skubis is excited by the prospect of what can be achieved.
“We’ve got quite a bit of height up forward which is really good and a great mix of ground-level players – I think it’s a really good blend," he said.
“We’ve injected some new blood – we’ve picked up Mia Austin who is a really exciting prospect, in terms of her talent.
“Mia is really coachable and loves feedback. During the week she’ll send a message asking if we can catch up but in terms of raw talent, she’s really exciting and we saw in the match sim just what she can do.
"Phoebe McWilliams has come over from Geelong as well, just to add something different to the players that we’ve already got.”
However for Skubis, it doesn’t all come down to personnel.
“From my point of view, we just want to be a high-pressure forward line, that doesn’t get lazy – we need to work hard.”
Since landing at IKON Park, that hard work has begun for Skubis, both with his players and fellow coaching staff.
“Because we’ve got a relatively new coaching panel, we’re all working on our connections and how we interrelate with each other.
"They’re a really good crew so that’s made things a lot easier.”
Ramping up preparations with Round 1 looming, the intensity will only continue to rise.
“I think we’ll really start to hone in on match intensity and really getting our connection to drive our structures for a game," he said.
Carlton will have its next opportunity when the team takes to the hallowed turf of the MCG to face Melbourne, in an official practice match on Saturday 13 August before the season proper.
