“IT HAS been really tough, but tough times always build a bit of resilience and character. We’ll be better in the long run for it.”

There was a sense of frustration come the conclusion of the home-and-away season for Patrick Cripps, but it was a different feeling to previous.

While the frustration of previous years has been borne out of a lack of results, Cripps’ and Carlton’s feelings come season’s end had come about due to a missed opportunity to play finals footy.

Looking holistically, Cripps said it was one of his “most enjoyable years on the footy field” despite all the challenges.

However, the co-captain said there was a level of unfinished business that already had him motivated for the truncated pre-season to come. And he feels the lessons learned in 2020 could very well be the making of the Navy Blues.

“It’s been one of the toughest years in football history. The lessons we have learned this year, I think it’ll be one of the best things for our group,” Cripps said.

“It’s hard to fathom that when you think about it, but being around each other all the time… I’ve said that I love that feel of a country footy club. There are a lot of good people at the Carlton Football Club.

“It has been really tough, but tough times always build a bit of resilience and character. We’ll be better in the long run for it.”

Those tough times that Cripps described can be isolated into moments such as games against Port Adelaide, Collingwood and GWS, where Carlton was in winning positions but ultimately fell short.

While Cripps said that the disappointment of the season was burning, it hadn’t wavered the playing group’s sense of belief. If anything, it had only heightened it, and - as Cripps said - “you can’t fake that”.

“You’ve got to earn it. We started to earn that belief with each other,” he said.

“When you add that with the natural development of our group, and how hard we’re going to work over the break — we’ve got a lot of guys who are self-driven and self-motivated. You want to work with guys like that.

“We’re so driven to play successful football. It wasn’t where we wanted to get this year, but the amount of belief we’ve got as a group will hold us in good stead going forward.”

Coming out of his second season as co-captain of the football club, Cripps has always maintained that he gets the most enjoyment out of seeing young players start to believe.

With changes to training seeing smaller groups throughout the week, Cripps had been able to spend more time working directly with Sam Walsh and Will Setterfield. It comes as no surprise that their respective seasons left Cripps with a smile on his face.

“I love seeing young guys putting time into their game and getting reward for effort,” he said.

“I think you can see guys already [taking ownership], guys like the Weiterings, the Walshes and the Setterfields. Seeing the growth of some of those young guys is always rewarding as a leader: when you try and help them get better and you see the enjoyment - especially when they play a good game and we win - is pretty special.

“There’s a band under those guys which are really coming through. There are stories all over the field.”

Cripps didn’t quite hit the standards set in previous seasons, although he still recorded more centre clearances than anyone in the competition and the fifth most contested possessions.

Having undergone successful shoulder surgery last week, Cripps said the layoff was the perfect chance to let his body rest and return for 2021 as a “better athlete and person”.

“Everyone plays with little niggles. I’m looking forward to the break — I’m really motivated already for next year,” he said.

“I’ve been pretty lucky on the injury front over my career in terms of surgeries: going under the knife [was] something different for me. It’ll be a good chance for my body to rest for 4-6 weeks and then get back into it.

“Once you have a breather and get away from it, that motivation really comes back and you’re ready to go again.”

Cripps said that motivation wasn’t individualised, but rather spread across the playing group. With the AFL confirming the return to pre-season training dates, the road to 2021 is now a whole lot clearer.

The three-time John Nicholls Medallist said the playing group was under no illusions of what was in store over the summer.

“We know we’ve got to be better, we’re self-driven to get better,” he said.

“The main thing is the group stays together and has that real belief, and our group has that. We’re really excited for next year already.

“The boys are looking forward to a bit of a breather, but we know we’re building something special. We know it’s going to take a lot of hard work but we firmly believe we’re going on the right track.”