Blues 'knocking on the door'
Up to eight players are pushing for senior selection at Carlton with some quality form in the VFL
IN THE past, Brett Ratten's headaches have been brought on by his team's lack of form or fitness, structural issues or some other troubling matter.
These days, he's happy to reach for the aspirin.
The Carlton coach has defied the pre-season doomsayers to guide the Blues to third spot on the ladder with half the premiership campaign in the rear view mirror, but an embarrassment of riches at VFL level is making team selection increasingly difficult.
Carlton takes on the Sydney Swans for the second time this season on Sunday and the coach must weigh up team balance against the good form of up to eight players for the Northern Bullants when choosing his line-up.
Regardless of the moves he makes ahead of the Swans' game, Ratten is delighted that match committee meetings on a Thursday have become such a hotly debated affair.
"It's a tough dilemma. There are players who are knocking on the door and will be very stiff to miss out, but it's a good headache to have," Ratten said from Visy Park on Thursday.
"Usually we haven't had that problem, but what it does do is it keeps everyone on edge. They're all challenging each other.
"Even to watch training today, with some of the aspects that we were doing, they were so competitive, whether it was shadow work or things like that. They're really putting pressure on each other, which is really good."
Robbie Warnock, Ryan Houlihan, Jarrad Waite, Kane Lucas, Brock McLean, Setanta O'hAilpin, Aaron Joseph and Dennis Armfield are just some of the players who didn't take part in Sunday's win against the Brisbane Lions who could lay claim to a senior spot this weekend.
Full-back Michael Jamison was subbed out of the Lions' match after nursing an ankle injury in the lead up to the game, but Ratten said he had no lingering concerns over the issue.
The Blues have won just two of their past 16 encounters with the Swans, but one of those wins - a 16-point victory at the SCG in round six this season - was of particular significance to Carlton's surge up the ladder.
"[Last time we played] it was one of the games in this season that have really kick-started our group and helped create some belief," Ratten said.
""When you come to play the Swans, you're in for a scrap, a fight, you name it - it will be on.
"It will be a really good challenge for us."
Carlton's efforts in winning eight games, losing two and drawing one have earned the club widespread praise in the media, but Ratten isn't about to start believing his own press.
"There's still a lot of footy to be played. I think last year we sat 7-4 at the halfway mark," he said.
"We're pretty much halfway now, but things can change very quickly with a few injuries or things like that.
"We lost [Matthew] Kreuzer last year and that might have had a big effect on the group and the way the team went in the second half of the year, but I think the belief and the depth of the players that we have has been our greatest strength this year."
Kreuzer played his first game back from a knee reconstruction last weekend and the coach is delighted with how his star ruckman has recovered from the hit-out.
