The Preview | Round 9 V GWS Giants
Season So Far:
If you had told any AFL supporter prior to the commencement of the season, that 8 rounds in, Carlton and GWS would face off with one side sitting 6-2 and firmly placed in the top 4. With the other 2-6, treading water in the bottom 4 and having just sacked their coach, I doubt there would be too many people currently predicting which team was in which position.
But all of a sudden, the Carlton Football and the GWS Giants are in a position where no one thought they would be a matter of months ago. The nature of the beast that is AFL has thrown up some curveballs this year, and none have taken as big of an off spin turn as the ladder position of these two sides, in comparison to their pre-season expectations.
We all know the story of Carlton. New coach, new administration, new players, new Carlton. Bursting out of the blocks with a 3-0 start, having some stumbling blocks that saw them 4-2, before demolishing both North Melbourne and Adelaide to see themselves 6-2 after 8 rounds. This transformed Carlton team has been led by the new Patrick Cripps… well, the new old Patrick Cripps.
Cripps, after having a below average 2020 and 2021, has come out and arguably, has 18 Brownlow votes from the 6 full games he has played this year. Having at least 30 touches and a goal in every game he has played, this season could be the making of Patrick Cripps, as he is proving to everyone that he has returned to being one of the best players in the competition.
Moving over to the West of Sydney, the same can’t be said for the GWS Giants. A pre-season full of hope, with old gun Stephen Coniglio and Lachie Whitfield, bound to return to their best. Up and coming stars Tom Green and Lachie Ash ready to have their breakout season, as well as Toby Greene ready to announce himself as well and truly one of the best players of the season.
However, things haven't gone to plan. They had a poor start to the season, being overrun by the Swans in round 1, before being outclassed by the Tigers the next week. They got their first win against the Suns, before losing three on the bounce against the Dockers, Dees and Saints. A comfortable win against the Crows has been overshadowed by a disappointing loss against the Cats in Manuka.
A very topsy turvy season has eventually led to coach Leon Cameron being relieved of duties, with his final match to be Sunday afternoon against the Blues. Despite the poor start to the season, the Giants will for sure be up for this game, wanting to give their 2nd ever coach the send-off he deserves.
Despite the club's start to the season and the current vibe around each club, Carlton fans aren't exactly confident about winning this game, whereas the Giants are up and about and full of faith heading into the weekend.
One reason is for the aforementioned injection of energy the recent news will give the Giants players, and the recent injuries to Carlton doesn’t give them a world of confidence. However, perhaps a physiological reason behind the Blues cautious attitude and Giants optimistic attitude is the trauma that the Giants have been giving to the Blues over the recent years.
Despite only being 10 years into their existence, Carlton has only won 3 times against the Giants, with all their wins coming at Marvel Stadium. Considering the Sunday clash with be played in Sydney, that stat doesn’t favour the Blues at all.
The last time Carlton beat GWS was in 2017. Where the Blues scraped over the line by one point after the Giants kicked 7 behinds in the last quarter. Before that, it was the young Giants that fell to the Blues, with Carlton’s last two wins coming in 2012 and 2013, winning by 67 and 94 points respectively.
However, barring those three games, it has been one-way traffic heading Sydney bound. With wins coming in a variety of different fashions. In 2014, a still very young and inexperienced Giants outfit ended Carlton’s season in round 14 after an 8 point win. A year later it was a very different story, with the sides playing twice, and the Giants getting up by a combined 159 points.
In 2016 it was a 10 goal loss before 2018 was perhaps the most embarrassing of them all. The Giants won that day by 105 points, a record margin against the Blues, despite the margin, it was the manner in which the game played out which was the embarrassing part. Halfway through the last quarter, the Giants had so many injuries, that at one stage, there were 16 players on the field. In that last quarter, the Giants outscored the Blues 45 to 6.
2019 was arguably even worse, as a 93 point loss was the beginning of the end for Brenton Bolton. A 12 months later, 1 thousand strong at Metricon Stadium saw the Giants kick 4 last quarter goals to end the Blues finals hopes with 3 rounds to go, after the Blues kicked 4 goals in the first quarter, only to kick 1 for the rest of the match.
Despite all this, perhaps none have been more embarrassing than the soulless, embarrassing effort that was displayed last year. I hesitate to go too in-depth on this match for a multitude of reasons, but I think we all know the story. No effort, no heart, no integrity, as the Giants humiliated the Blues by 6 goals, in a game that put a cork in the Blues season with 10 rounds to go.
As the saying goes, there is always light at the end of the tunnel. And we are slowly starting to see the light. As this new, rejuvenated Carlton outfit is ready to put all these traumas behind them and is ready to create history of its own. It’s time for this Carlton side to stand up and prove themselves as a team not to be taken lightly, and a team ready to destroy every team that they come across.
Team News:
The Blues have had the worst week of injuries in a long, long time. With reining Coleman Medallist Harry McKay out for 6 weeks with a meniscus tear. Forward Jack Martin is out with a calf strain and defender Lewis Young is out due to Health and Safety protocols. Liam Stocker and George Hewett are both included in the extended squad, with Jesse Motlop in line for a potential debut.
The Giants came out unscathed after their game with the Cats. With no new injuries coming out of that game and through the week. Forward Jake Riccardi and young starts Tanner Bruhn and Conner Stone are included in the extended squad, with Matt De Boar included as well.
