CARLTON coach Brett Ratten sat down with Jason Phelan to reflect on what the Blues have achieved at the halfway point of the season.

Halfway through the season and you're comfortably in the eight. Tell me about some of the positives of your campaign to this point.
There are some real positives across the board for the team. You can look at individuals, but even if you break it down into lines, I think our defence has stiffened up a bit and we have some more flexibility there. The mix around the ball [is better] with Mitch Robinson playing a little more centre square as well as Heath Scotland early while Chris Judd was out. Sometimes through adversity you find out a bit more about people. With Judd not being in the team it allowed us to play Scotland a bit more inside as well as Kade Simpson and a few others so that's been a real positive along with Kane Lucas jumping up and playing so well. Then up forward we've had Setanta at full-forward and the three indigenous boys - Eddie Betts, Chris Yarran and Jeff Garlett - with Ryan Houlihan playing well up forward as well. From a line point of view there's been excitement and a really good balance.

The first half of your draw looked brutal and had the potential to derail your season. You must be pleased with the way your players have been able to focus on the task at hand to be where you are now.
It's been a case of trying to keep the ledger even or have our noses in front in the win-loss scenario. We have tried to keep it simple in terms of not looking six weeks ahead. It's hard though. You hear stuff in the media and talk around [our draw]. The way everyone was talking about the first half of our year it was like we just should have packed up and gone on holiday. We thought we could get a lot of growth with some of the kids who were getting into that 40 to 60-game bracket. The one that you would have loved to have played more is Paul Bower. He really assists us as a team, but he's one that's missed out. Walker's come back in as well so that's been a huge plus for us.

On the flip side, what could have gone better in your campaign to date?
Touch wood, we haven't had many long-term injuries, but we have had a lot of smaller soft-tissue type injuries. We've dipped out there a little bit, but we haven't had many out for long period which has been a plus. Bower's the one with some key match-ups that we would have liked to have played more. He's played on Buddy Franklin before and done well, so it would have been nice to have him available more, but with him out we've found out a bit about Simon White. Walker and Gibbs have had to play back a little bit more and that's actually assisted the team. Sometimes, like in the Judd scenario, you get to try people out and find where they're at. That allows us to do different things at the pointy end with Betts, Yarran and Garlett. It all balances out.

It seemed like the pressure was really on you after the Essendon loss. It seems a long time ago now because you've done pretty well since, but how do you deal with the roller coaster nature of this game?
I don't think you can manage it. Whether it's a talkback caller or a website or whatever I tend to remove myself from all that. Some people have their opinions and that then creates a bit of a wave [of publicity]. The Essendon one was a really disappointing one because it was really unlike us even out of the poor games we've played this year. It was a game where we gave nothing. What was our style? Where was our approach to the game? Were we prepared to sit there and just cop it? In a way I was glad that it happened. I'm glad it happened because it was a reminder to us all, on and off the field, that you've just got to get everything right. It was pretty important.

It allowed you to roll out a few home truths?
I think it did. I was a bit more confronting [with the players]. Whether it's a defining moment in our season, I'm not sure, but I think so far it has been.

How about the game plan? You talked about not wanting to leave yourself exposed to opposition run-ons before the season - how have you assessed that?
We concede about 87 points a game - or something around that mark - and we had that blowout against Collingwood as well.

I've got to ask you about the holding the ball aloft business. The crowd hates it, but is that just part of the game now?
I think it is. It's something that we haven't done as well as other clubs. It cost us a final last year which didn't sit well with me considering we were in control and let the situation get out of control because we couldn't play a certain way. Playing one brand of footy is good when you're hitting your one-wood a long way, but when you're not you need to be able to do some other things. It's something that we've worked on. We're growing in that area and if you don't practice it is hard to execute in a game scenario. I don't think you can play at the high speed that the game goes at for 120 or 130 minutes. Your midfield needs a spell and sometimes your forwards because they've chased or the game has been circle work of an attack-counter attack type game. They need to have a spell and I think it's pretty critical to get that aspect of the game right.

Your forward line was a big talking point before the season, but you've been able to kick a winning score often. Aside from a couple of regulars, the personnel through there has changed a fair bit from week to week either through form or injury. How hard has that been to manage or are you just happy that the different looks have become a bit of a weapon for you?
A bit of both. We played around with the three-tall/two-tall scenarios. Setanta and his little helpers are all a bit unpredictable. They can do mercurial things which does give some x-factor which makes us hard for opponents to gauge. Ryan Houlihan's played some extremely good games, while Jarrad Waite and Lachie Henderson have been able to fill that other tall role for us. Waitey's form since he came back after the first spell has been really good and Henderson sent a message with eight goals the week after he went back to the VFL.

Have you had to manage Waite's own expectations of himself? He's looked frustrated at times coming back from the knee reconstruction.
Early doors we thought he was ready and he did too, but probably in hindsight he should have started in the reserves and built from there just to get the speed of the game back. But because we know about his x-factor and what he can do for us we thought it would be great to get Jarrad in the team and get him going. Looking back and reflecting on it, it was probably a bit more our fault than his.

How is Brad Fisher progressing?
He's going well. He's played pretty well the last couple of weeks. He's kicked a few goals and has looked lively. We've spoken about getting to the break and then somewhere around three weeks after we'll have a look at exactly where he's at. He missed the start of the year obviously, but he did all the pre-season so his fitness wasn't horrible when he got back and he's regained it fairly quickly. He's a seasoned player, but we're probably going to look at the last six weeks to see what he can do for us in the senior team.

Fans always want immediate results when their club pulls off a high-profile trade and it's fair to say Blues' supporters haven't had that with Brock McLean. How have you seen his first half of the season? Is he still carrying an injury?
He's had a few little niggles and things like that, but he's fine. He played against West Coast [in round 10] when we were down on numbers. Brock, Steven Browne and Richard Hadley had all played half a game of football in three weeks, so in an ideal world they all would have played reserves, but that was the case that week with injuries. McLean's numbers were his best in that West Coast game, but he only played 58 per cent game time. Houlihan was on restricted game time as well to come in for the next week [against Melbourne] and we thought it was important to pick a team with 22 fit men with no restrictions. We'd lost three men against Hawthorn, lost men against Adelaide and then played St Kilda on a five-and-a-half day break so we just thought the work load of a lot of players across the board was pretty heavy. It was really important that we kept everyone fresh, or as fresh as you can after an AFL game, so it was more on the fitness side of things that he got left out. He only played 58 per cent of the game, then didn't really train during the week and it was a six day turnaround so there were just too many risks there. His name would have come up last week, but he got a touch of food poisoning which knocked him around a bit.

So bigger and brighter things for Brock in the second half of the season?
His numbers before he got injured were fairly comparable with Lenny Hayes in terms of clearances and stoppage work - they were right up there - so he'll get back in, but we've just got to make sure that our list is fully fit and ready to go. He's done most things right as far as I'm concerned.

You've got an embarrassment of riches in the ruck this year with the four big fellas. The competition is fierce, but how are you managing the guys who are missing out?
You can never have enough big guys, but we just don't see them as ruckmen. Kreuzer can play forward and Hampson can definitely play forward, so if we went down a different path - a bit like David Hale from the Kangaroos - you might think of them as ruckmen but they have more strings to their bow. Some have more flexibility than others, but they'll all get a run at varying stages.

You must be thrilled with what you've seen from Kane Lucas.
He's a very good player. His fitness levels are at AFL level already which is a real bonus. He can run Princes Park in sub-11 minutes, he's the right size at 188cm and he's got a really good footy mind. The information and some of the tasks that we've given him from game to game he's fulfilled them really well. Fitness-wise he's really adapted to the AFL very quickly but he's got a real footy head on him as well. He hasn't seemed out of place and he's got great leg speed too - he's a lot quicker than I thought. You watch them test at the draft camp and think that someone's a quick player but when you actually play footy, some guys who don't test quick actually play quicker than they test and vice versa.

Who haven't we seen so far this year that is likely to make more of an impact in the second half of the season?
Shaun Grigg hasn't played a game this year, he's been injured a bit, so he'll probably come in at some stage. Hampson is also one that can come in down the track because he can play as a forward as well. He's our quickest player at the club at 201cm and he chases and tackles as well, so playing him as a forward is an option.

Consistency of effort has been a constant theme throughout your media conferences this season. Is it really that simple and how do you keep that message fresh for your players?
It's more about our approach in terms of our key performance indicators and our defensive actions that get us going in games. That's a measurement that's proved true through history with good teams and how they go about it. It's not a message that we just found and we've got this new recipe called 'consistency'. As boring or as mundane as it is, it's true. When we get a constant effort in our tackles through the midfield, a consistent effort to win hard and loose balls - and you could go through every club and they'd have basically the same KPIs - when we consistently hit those targets we'll win more often than we lose. If you hit those KPIs week in and week out or quarter to quarter you'll end up in front of the ledger. From where we've been and what we've done as a younger group we just need to work on that consistency because you do get fluctuations in the approaches of young men. They're influenced by family, friends, media and other outside factors, but we're trying to get this group to be really united and very consistent in there approach and that's a message most coaches would preach. You've got your behaviours and expectations of the team and some rules that are etched in stone, but the players are all different characters from Mitch Robinson through to Jeff Garlett. You probably do need a psychology hat of some description as a coach. You try to get around to them all, but you've got 46 players these days and as a senior coach you mainly concentrate on the 22 that run out.

You mention your younger group there. The list you have now is different to the one that you inherited three years ago. I'm guessing you were probably more of a teacher or a mentor early in your career - are you still that or have you had to evolve as a coach with your maturing group?
I was probably more of a tactical coach early and sometimes gave them a little bit too much information as I tried to fast track the group. But some of the things we've got in place in that regard, we've worked on for a while now so we don't have to revisit them as much. I probably try and talk to them more about the emotional side of the game now.

That seems at odds with your policy of not building up blockbuster games against traditional rivals doesn't it?
No, because part of what I mean when I say that is that I'm trying to take away outside influences. We're in control of this group regardless of whether it's a supposed blockbuster or a 'normal' game - the four premiership points are the same. The opposition is out to target us, they're out to beat us, so what are the things that we need to do? Instead of concentrating on outside influences I'm trying to get to what actually motivates us and pinpoint what we need to do as a group to succeed. It's not about what the papers or radio or websites or the people down the road think. Take all that away and let's talk about what we need to do as a team.  

Just in finishing, you're in sixth spot with seven wins and 10 games to go. How do you feel you're placed heading into the home stretch?
The next four weeks are really critical. We've got four home games at Etihad Stadium, so we know what we're going to get in terms of the conditions, which really allows us to manage our list. We've got Bower back in the reserves as well as Yarran and Lucas so we're starting to get the right 25 to 28 players together which can really take us the next step. Who knows what's ahead of us? But I think it's more about getting our list right because when we can get our good talent out there I think we've shown that we can get the results and we're dangerous opposition for most teams.

So there was no re-assessment of your goals at the halfway mark given your position inside the eight?
No. The plan was in place to play finals and that will never change - in my time anyway. Every time we finish a season we expect to play finals and that's something that was drummed into me as 14-year-old in the scholarship squad here right through until my last game. It's something that Carlton people should expect and should demand from us as a club, coaches and players. Where you finish in that top eight is a different proposition each year, but I think we should give ourselves the ability to have that opportunity to see how far we can go. It's something that our club's been really proud of and will continue to be.