AFTER a disappointing loss to Essendon, Carlton Senior Coach Mathew Buck reflected on the season that has been.
While the Blues didn't crack the top eight, there were plenty of moments to be proud of throughout the year, but also plenty to work on moving forward.
Buck said the group will take time in the upcoming week to dissect the areas of improvement and put a strong plan in place for 2025.
Here's what he had to say.
On the Week 10 game:
"We celebrated Jess Dal Pos’ retirement tonight. There’s that feeling but we’ve got a gap that we have to close against the rest of the competition.
"We’ll reflect on the year: we’ll have some moments we’re really proud of but the consistency across the year just wasn’t there for us. That’s our big product moving forward: how do we become a more consistent side so that we can close that gap?"
On the improvements in 2024:
"I absolutely feel like we took steps forward and when we look at our midfield group, young Keeley Sherar in there who has had an outstanding season. I’ll be shocked if she doesn’t make the All-Australian squad again, Abbie McKay rose to another level which is terrific, carrying injury throughout the year and couldn’t get up tonight, Meg Robertson has had a fantastic year down back.
"We’ve played some tough teams, we’ve had a good go at the top eight sides this year and we’ve got our feedback on our areas of improvement, but that probably hides the growth a little bit in terms of results and where we finished.
"I’m really pleased with the growth we’ve had. Do we want more? Absolutely we do and we’ll chase that really hard because we’ve got a hungry group that wants to get better."
On Ciara Fitzgerald's performance:
"Ciara’s effort was incredible. She actually nicked her hamstring in the warm-up, so had to play through that as well. An injury replacement player who has taken her opportunity with both hands.
"Tonight seeing her flying around like that with her hamstring is a credit to the work she’s put in and as a high-performing athlete across all facets. I’m really proud of her game tonight, but overall, the player and the person she’s turned into."
On Abbie McKay's late withdrawal and Lila Keck coming into the game:
"'Abs' had been carrying an injury, so it was a week-by-week proposition and unfortunately, it was too much tonight to get her up.
"You just plug in and play. It gave Lila Keck an opportunity and Maddy Guerin did a little bit more midfield time tonight than we wanted to use her, but she’s well-equipped to go through there.
"In terms of moving magnets, Lila knows her role and made the most of her opportunity tonight, it wasn’t too much of a distribution to the team."
On key improvement areas moving forward:
"Certainly, our ability to connect with the forward line. We feel like we’ve had some opportunities to go inside 50 but we haven’t been able to capitalise.
"When you look at Adelaide, their key forwards really have a strong impact on the game and that’s through the consistent ball use they get through the mid part of the ground.
"That’s something we definitely need to chase and that’s what the great teams in our competition do. Their ability to connect with their forwards in their forward end is helping."
On luring trade targets to Carlton:
"We think our program is as good as anyone's. We run a really elite program and I think Keeley Sherar and the players I mentioned earlier are products of that.
"We’re a young, developing group that is hungry to get better and wants to be a top eight side. There’s all the facets of trade and draft over the next few weeks and we’ll certainly be in there."
On Sophie McKay:
"'Soph' is different to Abbie, she has plenty of energy. We’ve seen her play some great games through the national championships over the last couple of years. She’s a dynamic footballer who would certainly support our group."
On the effects of the condensed fixture:
"It’s been a tough year in terms of the fixture and workload across a shortened season.
"That’s been the tough part of the competition but it’s been hard for everyone. I think when I watch as a product, stepping back and looking at the big picture, I think it’s hurt the product a little bit and we’re not seeing the best of what our players can produce.
"I think the more time we can give our athletes to recover and be at their best every week is a no brainer for me.
"We were two days away from a game a lot throughout the year, it left our ability to train and improve - it wasn’t where we’d like it to be.
"We need to continue to improve every week and training helps us do that, but the condensed fixture means recovery, preparing to play and there was no training during that period."
