Most Carlton supporters would have thought that ‘damage control’ was the best case scenario for stopping Robert Harvey last Saturday, but they didn’t count on the efforts of Ryan Jackson. Not only did the classy midfielder restrict Harvey to 19 largely ineffectual disposals, but he picked up 23 possessions and 12 marks himself to be in Carlton’s best on the day and a worthy winner of Play of the Week. Mike and Dan caught up with the young Blue as he prepared for this week’s big game against Collingwood.

You’ve won Play of the Week for your fantastic blocking efforts or Robert Harvey. Is this the most prestigious award that you’ve won in your short AFL career?

*laughs* Yeah it would be at this stage, I’ve won a few Best and Fairests at underage level, and All Australian honors at under 16 level, but this is definitely the highlight!

How does it feel to be the first Carlton player in history to draw level, if not beat, Robert Harvey?

I didn’t look at it like that, on the day I just tried to stick with him and block his possessions. I knew I had the motor to run with him and the game plan to stay with him and get a few touches myself. He is known for his motor but I’ve always had a good endurance base and last pre-season I worked really hard over Christmas to increase my fitness levels. Endurance has always been on of my main strengths and I used it on Saturday to keep up with him.

It was disappointing to lose, but the boys put in a great effort on the weekend. What was the mood like after the game?

The mood was good, even in coaches room Ratts was pretty happy with our effort, and our effort was the main thing that we were going to be judged on. We stuck with it and Ratts told us that our last quarter was the thing that was going to stick in the mind of our supporters. We had trained hard during the week, and we knew during the last quarter we needed to step up and as a group we did ok in the end.

What kind of a coach is Brett Ratten? Does he get animated or is he calm and collected?

He was very enthusiastic, and even as an assistant coach he was always out there kicking the footy with the players. On game day he was cool and calm, and went through all of our plans and match ups pretty thoroughly. He has a lot of knowledge about the game and it really shows. The way he goes about it and gets around to all the players is a real strength and something he is very good at. He is a very thorough coach who is very aware of opposition strengths and game plans.

There was a great statistical improvement from you second game to your third – how did your roles differ between the game against the Lions in round 5 and the game against the Saints last week?

I didn’t really have a role against the Lions, it was more just to play on the wing and get a few kicks but I didn’t end up with much game time. For Ratts to give me a go, to get the 4 quarters of footy and playing on one of the stars of the game in Robert Harvey was fantastic for me. I had watched his tape during the week and got a few tips of the assistant coaches. Harvey runs really hard between the two fifties, he can go around the back and sneak off on you so you have to be on the ball on the ball. If you don’t he’ll get away from you and start getting some touches and cutting you up.

I had never been a tagger at any stage during my junior footy career, but at the start of the year the coaching staff talked to me and because I had a good endurance base, I did a lot of running with Nick Stevens and he gave me a great insight on how to tag the good players.

How is the hand after your unlucky break earlier in the year? Do you have full confidence in it now?

It’s much better now, in fact there’s no soreness at all. I did a lot of rehab to get it super right, my surgeon was really good and it doesn’t give me any trouble any more. The physiotherapy was fairly intense, the nurses did a lot of bending and rubbing my arm through where I had the plate put in, and gave it lots of treatment to get the mobility back. I spoke to my surgeon last week and he said that the plate can come out at the end of the year if I want, or I can keep it there for life. I will probably leave it in there to be honest, as taking it out will require a minor operation and I don’t want to get a few weeks behind in training.

Who has been the biggest influence for you at the club, and which of the assistant coaches do you work most closely with?

Before when Denis was coaching, Ratts was my biggest influence, and now that Ratts is coach I’ve been doing a lot with Braddles over the past couple of weeks. Being around two legends of the club in Ratts and Braddles is amazing, and the mood at the club definitely changed at the start of the year when they came along.

Kouta was a big influence on us all and it was a shock when he had to retire. The players got a text message on Wednesday morning to say that we had to be at the club earlier than usual, and there were a few cameras around so we knew something was up. It was a sad day, Kouta got a bit emotional as you would expect from someone who has been around the club for so long and a champion of the game.

You can be honest now, were you disappointed that you weren't promoted at the end of last year?

Yeah was a bit disappointed to be honest but that’s only natural, I’m not going to lie about it. Its every rookie’s dream to get promoted, and I did ok at the end of last year and was hoping for a guernsey, but obviously its turned out ok now and I’m glad to have my opportunity.

We've got Collingwood at the 'G this week. Who do you think you will be lining up on?

We had a run through of the game yesterday and talked about some prospective match ups. The coaches aren’t 100 percent sure about who is getting who at the moment, but that will be sorted out very shortly.

I haven’t played against Collingwood but I know it’s a really big day as we are traditional rivals and there is a lot of spirit out there. There might be a bit of physical stuff, it always seems to get the game going between the two sides.

Tell us about your pathway through the junior ranks and the Northern Knights and how you ended up at Carlton?

I started off at Greensborough and got picked up as a 16 year old at Northern Knights. I was Vice Captain at under 18 level and played with some other guys such as Brett Stanton, Ricky Dyson and a couple of the Shaw boys. I went to draft camp and missed out both years, but got a call after draft and was asked by Wayne Hughes if I wanted to try out. He didn’t need to ask me twice!

What do you know about the history of the no.38 guernsey at the club?

I know that Shane Robertson played about 80 games for the club and played in a premiership. He actually rang me when I got the guernsey and obviously you listen to a player like that who played in such a good era for the club and you want to wear the number with pride.

Here is your opportunity to pay out on any of your team mates. Anything you’d like to say about them that Blues supporters should know?

I’ve actually been waiting for this opportunity to come around for a while! I have to say that the way that Cam Cloke talks to his girlfriend is unbelievable! He likes using the word darl and is always telling her that he loves her. He tries so hard to get in the good books!

Having been given the opportunity to take on and comprehensively beat one of the greatest players of the modern era, Ryan Jackson has shown that he has a great deal of potential to develop into an exciting midfielder for the Blues. His versatility in adapting so well to an unfamiliar role as tagger has shown further strengths that this rookie can develop over time, and along with his good performance last week, Jackson will be looking forward to ending the 2007 season well and building some momentum for 2008.