Despite being sidelined with an ankle injury since Round 10, Carlton captain Marc Murphy has been heavily involved in the Blues’ game preparations as the side sets to face off against Collingwood on Saturday night. 

Speaking on radio on Thursday morning, Murphy said he was working closely with the club’s younger brigade for further development.  

“I’ve had a bit more involvement in terms of team meetings - taking a few meetings after games and doing some small parts in terms of review, which I’ve been enjoying, so it’s keeping my mind pretty fresh,” Murphy told RSN 927.

“(During matches) I’ve been sitting with a lot of the younger guys and talking about what’s happening out on the ground, and then talking about that midweek with some of the younger guys who aren’t out there at the moment and giving those guys on-ground feedback.”

Forced to take a temporary spectator’s role, Murphy said he could understand some of the frustrations of the coaching staff on game day.

“You can understand from the coach’s point of view, how frustrating it can be when all week you’re looking at certain aspects of your game, you try and implement (what you’ve focused on) and when it doesn’t happen for various reasons, it can get quite frustrating,” he said. 

“It certainly looks a lot easier from being up a bit higher. You tend to look at the game a bit differently.”

A slower-than-expected recovery stalled the skipper’s initial prospects of a return after the bye round and the midfielder is now targeting a return against the Swans in Sydney in Round 18.  

“It’s obviously pretty disappointing, (probably) missing the next three weeks which are all at the MCG,” he said.

“When you’re not playing you realise how much you do miss it and how much you do miss being out there with the boys. I’m certainly eyeing off Sydney up there, that’s something I’m trying to get up for.” 

This Saturday night, traditional rivals Carlton and Collingwood will go to battle for the Richard Pratt Cup, raising awareness of prostate cancer and honouring the memory of former Carlton president Richard Pratt.

Murphy said the Blues were hoping they could defeat the Magpies for the second time this season to lift the Cup. 

“I think they (Collingwood) played some good footy last week against Fremantle, so it’s important for us to play some good football,” he said.

“I think we’ve been a bit inconsistent the last three weeks so it’s a good opportunity for us to play four quarters and if we do, that will hold us in good stead.”