GROWING in confidence each week.

Tom De Koning has been relishing his role within the Blues system, enjoying rotating between the forward line and the ruck position.

Assessing the team each week to gauge whether De Koning will take the No.1 ruck role and how he’ll approach the opposition, every week is a new challenge for the 24-year-old. 

“We come up against sides that might be really strong in the ruck and we need the two rucks to work them over,” De Koning said. 

“We have different setups according to wherever I want to put it if I am in the ruck . . . I have my preferred hit zones which depends on the ruck I’m coming up against.”

Analysing the opponent each week can mean a number of different things for De Koning, especially if he is rotating between the ruck and the forward line. 

Taking into account the midfielders he’s hitting to and the ruck he is opposing, the No.12 tries not to overthink when game time rolls around, knowing he’s put in the preparation earlier in the week. 

“I’ve enjoyed going forward. That GWS game, I felt it worked really well, and being able to go in the ruck and pinch hit in there has been fun,” he said. 

“[The opponent] might be left-handed, right-handed, they might hit different sides or jump off different feet so it’s really dependent on the opposition and what I want to do at the time.”

When moving up forward, the challenge of jelling with Harry McKay and Charlie Curnow comes into play, with De Koning not wanting to get in the way of his fellow talls.

However, De Koning is now confident with the rotation, referencing the amount of time and planning that goes into the trio working together.

“The main focus for us is getting that separation and getting patterns that will give us good one-on-ones because we feel like we can all be damaging in a one-on-one contest,” he said.

“It’s the times that we allow the defenders to drop off, that’s when they might be able to intercept or kill the ball. We’re trying to get good separation and work together well, that will give us the best opportunity to hit the scoreboard.”

Playing at a career-best level in 2024, De Koning feels that he is finally accepting his vital role in the team, feeling a sense of trust and belonging within the Club that he hasn’t before. 

Noticing a shift in his mindset midway through last year, the 24-year-old has an all-time confidence in not only his own abilities, but in his teams. 

“I think it probably began midway through last year when we started to gain some momentum through wins and I really felt that confidence in playing my role. 

“I knew I didn’t have to have an amazing game, but as long as I played my role for the team and as long as we were getting wins, that I was being valued and I had that confidence.

“I have the most trust I’ve ever had in all of my teammates at the moment, and I feel like we’ve been able to build since then and back in what the coaches are telling us and go to work.”

There is a stark difference from the Carlton outfit that was preparing to take on Essendon this time last year to now, with the Blues sitting on eight wins compared to four wins and a draw. 

De Koning has great belief in the group’s ability to perform in front of big crowds, putting their recent finals experience into practice and being ready to challenge the Bombers.

“I really love playing in the big games – I think we’re really fortunate to be a part of Carlton and playing in front of big crowds is kind of becoming normal now,” he said. 

“The rivalry and the rich history of the battle between both clubs, it definitely comes into play. Essendon are going really well at the moment, so we’re looking forward to a big game: we can’t wait.”