Alison Smirnoff pays tribute to Andrew Carrazzo who will play his 50th AFL game for Carlton on Saturday. Andrew’s grandfather owned a bakery in Nicholson Street Carlton and naturally Andrew grew up a Carlton supporter so it is fitting that he has made his AFL career with the Carlton Football Club.
This Saturday at the Dome Andrew Carrazzo, 23, will play his 50th senior game for Carlton. It is a special milestone when you consider what it took for him to get there. Carrazzo originally nominated for the 2001 National Draft – that’s right, the Judd Draft – but was unfortunately overlooked on Draft day. Despite this initial setback, he was given a second chance when Geelong selected him at number five in the Rookie Draft that same year. For the next two seasons he plied his trade for the Geelong VFL side but was unable to break into the senior squad and he was eventually released.
No doubt thinking that his AFL dream could be over, Carlton, the team he supported as a kid, came to the rescue and drafted him with pick number two in the 2003 Rookie Draft. After months of hard work on the training track and solid form for the Northern Bullants, Carrazzo finally got his chance to run out with the Blues in Round 21, 2004 against Melbourne at MC Labour Park. He lined up on the mercurial Aaron Davey and not only kept him goalless for the match but restricted him to just six possessions while racking up 18 himself. Incidentally, Carrazzo became the last Carlton player to play his debut match at MC Labour Park.
He followed up his fantastic debut with a solid season in 2005. He played 20 senior games and finished an impressive ninth in the club best and fairest. Had he been eligible for the Rising Star Award, he surely would have picked up a nomination during the season such was his impressive form.
Since his debut, Carrazzo has been a regular member of the senior team and has graduated from back pocket, to regular midfielder. In fact, Carrazzo is quite possibly in the best form of his career after picking up a career-high 34 disposals against Collingwood in Round 7. He backed up this effort with another solid performance against the Kangaroos last Saturday night. He managed 28 possessions on the night, the most by a Carlton player.
While the season-ending injury to Nick Stevens has depleted Carlton’s midfield potency and made life difficult for the likes of Marc Murphy, it has given Carrazzo an opportunity to shoulder more responsibility out in the middle and he has proven his worth as a genuine midfielder.
Andrew should feel extremely proud of this achievement. The hard work it has taken to get here is a credit to his dedication and desire to succeed. It also goes to show, that being overlooked in the National Draft is not the end of the world. After all, Carrazzo eventually made it here to his beloved Blues and hopefully this milestone will the first of many.
