“IT’S MASSIVE news. The Club is my favourite place to be.”

“I grew my confidence from week to week… I was playing with a bit more freedom.”

They were the comments of Lochie O’Brien and Matthew Cottrell respectively, with news confirmed earlier this week that the wing duo would be sticking around at IKON Park for a further two seasons.

Making up two of the six re-signings that Carlton announced across Tuesday and Wednesday, both Cottrell and O’Brien committed to the Blues until at least the end of 2024 on the back of a season where they broke through as consistent members of the senior side.

It’s only fitting that the two would enjoy seasons which shared quite a few parallels, in that they both locked down roles on the wing (among other positions), played their most games in a season and recommitted to the football club within days of each other.

After all, just last year, they were both informed that they would be delisted and re-rookied at Carlton.

“It was a bit challenging last year, being told that you’re getting delisted and back on the list,” Cottrell said.

“I was going to come back better and stronger, which I did. Me and ‘Obi’ were in the same both — I thought we both dealt with it well.”

“It was a tough time: I was at a real crossroads, on whether I’d just be here and be here, or whether I was going to be here and make an impact,” O’Brien added.

“I got given the opportunity and I was really thankful to the Club for that. This year was my chance to prove that they did the right thing, and going forward that’s what I’ll be doing — not only proving it to them, but also myself.”

Both cited the influence of AFL Senior Coach Michael Voss, who was going through the process to be selected in the role when Cottrell and O’Brien were informed that their Carlton journeys would be continuing, but not without a sense of the unknown.

Voss made a point when he stepped into the role of getting in front of individual players as much as Covid protocols at the time would allow, whether that was a walk around Princes Park or a one-on-one chat in his office.

As O’Brien attested to, the coach's faith went a long way.

“A lot of it came from the initial chats wth the coaches, with ‘Vossy’. It instilled belief and a clean slate,” O’Brien said.

“He took me for a walk around the park - which he did with a lot of players - and spoke about what he needed from me and what I needed from him. We didn’t look back from there.

“He told me to focus in on my strengths, and that’s what I did: I came back with some PBs in those areas.”

In Cottrell’s case, it was very similar.

As someone who had dreamed of pulling on the Navy Blue jumper - which his grandfather Len represented in the late 1950s - from day one, the chat with Voss set him on the path for a season where he’s now regarded as one of the Blues’ most improved players.

“I met up with him in his office — I was pretty nervous,” Cottrell said.

“He said how much he values me and really likes what I can bring as a player, which gave me a lot of confidence to hear that from ‘Vossy’ coming in. I ran with that.”

And run they did.

It was on the opening day of pre-season where both finished in the top three of the two-kilometre time trial back in November. Come early September, it was confirmed that their footballing journeys would have a few more chapters to come.

For Cottrell, the prospect of a contract double the tenure of what he’s used to provides even further clarity.

“I’ve been on the one-year deals for the last three or four years, so it’ll be nice too have a bit of a breather at the end of next year!

“You ride the highs and lows a bit when you’re on the one-year contracts. If you have a bad game, you think ‘that could be it’… if you have a good game, you’re going ‘I might be going well here’.

“I haven’t faced a two-year deal yet, but hopefully I can feel comfortable and put a good year together.”

And while O’Brien knows it’s not the end game, he hopes 2022 can be a launching pad.

“It’s definitely not the finished product, but two more years is huge news for me and a good stepping block for what I can produce in 2023 and onwards.”