‘Not Up to Scratch’: Carlton Star’s Honest Reflection Following Disastrous Season Start as Blues Falter to 0-4

Carlton defender Jack Silvagni has stated his team will rely on their previous experiences to help them escape the troubling situation they currently find themselves in.

The Blues managed to score only 46 points in their Thursday night defeat to Collingwood, putting them at 0-4 as the season begins to unfold.

They have yet to reach 80 points in a match and have a -110 scoreline in the second halves of their first four games.

Following yet another challenging loss, Silvagni shared his frustrations.

“It’s pretty clear that our performance wasn’t up to scratch. We’re truly disappointed with our start to the season,” Silvagni commented on 3AW in the locker rooms after the match.

“We understand it’s a long season ahead, but we need to engage in some forthright discussions, and those will take place during the week. It’s just disappointing.”

“We’ve had some flashes of good play, but mere flashes won’t suffice at AFL level … it’s simply not good enough.”

Carlton experienced a similar predicament mid-way through 2023, managing just one victory from rounds four to 13.

They regrouped to ultimately reach a preliminary final, creating a fairy tale run, and Silvagni believes they can draw on that experience to reinvigorate themselves.

“We’ll reflect on past experiences. After a poor start in 2023, we finished strongly. We can take confidence from the good performances we’ve delivered; obviously, the outcomes haven’t gone our way, but that’s part of the game. It’s something we’ll consider,” he said.

“We need to roll up our sleeves, put in the hard work, and thoroughly review our games.”

Carlton coach Michael Voss expressed that the club’s third quarter against Collingwood, during which they conceded four unanswered goals, was simply unacceptable.

“The way we played in the first half provided encouragement that we could maintain that level. There were no indicators to suggest a drop-off was coming. However, the third quarter was entirely unacceptable,” he stated.

“We often discuss the styles of play, but ultimately the game is won at the contest, and we were disappointing in that area during the third quarter.”

“Consequently, we lost territory and struggled to establish ball flow, which made it challenging to defend as we intended. The ball would come out; we’d lose the contest, and it would end up going back in.”

“When we looked back at the stoppages, they were more efficient, tougher around the ball, and intensified the pressure, which we didn’t cope with well.

“This will be a key point in our review. We’ve already had a candid discussion about that in the rooms, but that performance is not representative of us.”

Carlton’s next challenge is against West Coast in Gather Round, followed by a match against North Melbourne on Good Friday.