Carlton assistant coach John Barker says there's a strong synergy between him and senior coach Brendon Bolton.
The 40-year-old, who took charge of 14 matches in 2015 as caretaker, said despite missing out on the senior coaching role, his decision to stay at Carlton and re-unite with Bolton was a confident one.
“I’d worked at Hawthorn while Brendon was there coaching the Box Hill Hawks, so we worked together for a couple of years,” Barker told SEN 1116 on Wednesday.
“When he took over I was comfortable with staying, based on the fact we’re aligned in our vision and philosophies and what we think a good football club looks like. It's a good match-up.
“’Bolts’ has been really good so far in terms of his ability to educate.”
With Neil Craig, Shane Watson, Dale Amos, Tim Clarke and Josh Fraser the new additions to the Blues’ coaching staff, Barker joins Mathew Capuano as the only remaining coaches from 2015.
Learn more about Carlton’s coaching panel
He said the overhaul of the coaching panel and the introduction of 15 new players were proving to be a breath of fresh air, with the youngsters in particular bringing a “refreshing and exciting approach”.
But as the new-look outfit looks to jell and adapt to a new game plan, training loads have increased, with the team put through a brutal three-hour session yesterday as the mercury hit 42 degrees.
“There’s been a whole lot of change in many ways over the pre-season, but it’s good, it’s refreshing,” Barker said.
“We’ve got a pretty full program and at times their (players') heads are spinning with how much they need to learn.
“There’s been a real emphasis this pre-season on educating a new game plan and growing our standards. We know that if we want to get to where we’d like to get to, it’s about us continually giving strong effort."
Barker said the team had been spurred on by the support of the Carlton faithful, with the Club reaching 30,000 members by Christmas for the first time in its history.
“It’s (membership record) outstanding. It’s great to see so much support. It’s a real showing of the fact that the Club’s been really open and honest, and really trying to engage our member base,” he said.
“At the end of the day, your members make the Club. The coaches and players are really impressed with the way the members have been getting on board, and we hope that continues.”
The Blues will ramp up their preparations for the season in Melbourne before heading to Tasmania to kick off the NAB Challenge against Hawthorn on February 18.
Click here to see the Blues’ NAB Challenge fixture
