'Working our arses off' - Blues re-set for Bombers test
Carlton have taken a collective deep breath in their mid-season AFL break as their straightforward problem proves diabolically hard to fix.
"For us it's pretty simple - it's just our connection, we think," says defender Mitch McGovern.
"We've been doing a lot of work - and it started over the pre-season.
"Unfortunately it hasn't come to fruition out on the oval, but we've been working our arses off trying to get that right."
That inability to make the most of their defence and contested-ball work as they head into attack has been a big reason Carlton's season is on the precipice with a 4-7 record.
Rather than have a mid-season camp, as they famously did two years ago, the Blues went their separate ways.
McGovern, being the father of three children, visited Werribee Zoo.
They will return to action in the King's Birthday eve clash on Sunday night against arch-rivals Essendon, who similarly are outside the top eight and badly in need of a win.
Asked who are underdogs for the game, McGovern replied: "great question - ask the bookies."
Standing next to Essendon key forward Peter Wright at an MCG media call on Monday, McGovern said the Blues must be more selfless as they try to solve their connection issues going into attack.
Charlie Curnow and Harry McKay are obvious forward targets, but Carlton must be more selective.
"We're doing a lot right. We're defending really well ... we just need to finish, our players are getting opportunities," McGovern said.
"The competition is too even to not have a consistent four-quarter effort, which we've shown over the last six weeks, where we've let teams back into it.
"It's a hard one, like having Peter up in the forward line for Essendon. When you have a tall target like Charlie and Harry, it's hard to not kick to them when you know how good they are and what they can produce.
"It's more for us being selfless teammates and bringing other people into the game more, how to score better as a collective rather than individuals."
Equally, the Blues know they must not throw the baby out with the bath water, as their defence and contest work is giving them opportunities.
"We can't just focus in on what's not working, we have to focus in on what we're good at," he said.
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News.com.au
13 hours ago
- News.com.au
Queensland legend Gorden Tallis calls out Blues enforcer Spencer Leniu
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The Advertiser
15 hours ago
- The Advertiser
Magpies ponder selection posers for King's Birthday
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"He's a little infectious guy that we all love very much - he's a bit of a prankster, too. "We love how electrifying he can be. He can really give the X-factor to our team." Collingwood will have two more training sessions ahead of Monday and McRae said McStay was close to an immediate AFL recall. "There's a big chance Dan will be available. We're not quite ready to announce that - he still has a little bit to go," McRae said. "His magnet is getting really close to being considered." Collingwood will also consider a second ruck to back up Darcy Cameron, given the form of Demons captain Max Gawn. Despite Cameron also having a big season, McRae called Gawn "the best ruckman in the competition. "I have huge respect for Max Gawn ... I still love Darcy, more," McRae said. Sitting on top of the ladder, Collingwood will start favourites against Melbourne. 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He said sometimes the Collingwood coaches need to stay out of the way of the players. "I did learn that from Leigh - he used to call it the snowball, when it's coming down the hill ... get out of the way," he said. Monday will also be the Big Freeze fundraiser for the FightMND charity, with former Melbourne coach Neale Daniher addressing the Magpies on Wednesday. Daniher, diagnosed with MND more than a decade ago, cannot speak and used eye-recognition technology for his speech. McRae's brother-in-law Pat also has the disease and was another VIP guest at Collingwood on Wednesday. "This one is pretty special - close to home. Our players are super-excited for it, you see them today warming up - all knowing it's a big day, they all have the (Big Freeze) beanies on at training," McRae said. "We want to play the game, not the occasion, which we talk about a lot - but it's a big occasion."
West Australian
16 hours ago
- West Australian
Essendon great Tim Watson says Neale Daniher had to overcome his headstrong attitude in MND fight
Neale Daniher has had to conquer a headstrong attitude to fight his brave battle against motor neurone disease, says former teammate and close friend Tim Watson. AFL great Watson says the honesty with which his former Essendon teammate has spoken about his health plight — and his resolve not to let it dictate his life —is why the Big Freeze has been such a success. The annual fundraiser, centred around the King's Birthday clash between a side Daniher coached to a grand final, Melbourne, and one of its fierce rivals, Collingwood, has raised more than $115 million in just over a decade. Heading into the 11th Big Freeze on Monday, Watson revealed why Daniher, the 2025 Australian of the Year, had become such an icon. 'I think because of his authenticity. I think people saw that this was something that was real —this person wasn't doing anything for himself. He was doing something for a cause,' Watson told The Nightly. 'I think that resonated with people. In a world where there's so much manufacturing of image, I think people could see that this bloke was 100 per cent authentic and real. And he did it with humour as well — he was self-deprecating. 'The way that he framed it as 'slaying the beast', the way he spoke just appealed to people, and they all just wanted to jump on board the cause.' Watson said the Bombers' youngest-ever captain (1982) never shied away from the challenges and evolved as a person during his MND fight. 'He was very headstrong,' Watson said. 'He had a lot of setbacks in his own career. There's something about him. There's this different Neale that has appeared with this. He's been a remarkable human being. I think it's just astounding how he's conducted himself.' 'I think it's about the positivity, about the way that he's spun it,' Watson said. After being diagnosed in 2013 with the incurable disease, which degenerates motor neurons in the brain and spinal cord robbing the sufferer of the ability to move and talk, Daniher has been determined to find a cure. 'Even yesterday, in his address to Melbourne, it wasn't about 'woe is me' or dwelling on the negative, but saying, 'what's something positive I can do?' No matter how miserable it might look, how can I spin that around? 'He's definitely done that and demonstrated that to everybody — that no matter what the diagnosis might be and how poorly he felt at times … I think it did take him a while when he was first diagnosed to find some sort of way of dealing with it internally. And then the way that he's been able to do that publicly — I think he's just been like a beacon of optimism and inspiration for so many people.' Daniher's playing career was derailed by injuries that saw him miss out on playing in Essendon's flag-winning teams of 1984 and 1985. He did finally win a flag with the Bombers as an assistant coach in 1993. He features on tonight's episode of Unfiltered on Channel 7 , where he shares a rare insight into the lowest point of his career and the personal news that got him 'out of his funk.' The interview was conducted over several weeks, with Hamish McLachlan and Daniher exchanging text messages. Daniher responded using his eye-gaze machine, which makes his voice sound like it used to. Daniher played 66 games in three years for Essendon between 1979 and 1981, but injuries restricted him to just 16 more before he retired. Essendon were the reigning premiers, and Daniher had dreams of lifting the premiership cup that in 1985 when disaster struck in mid-week game. 'Footy gives you great highs and tragic lows, that's for sure. The lowest I felt as a player would have been in 1985,' Daniher said. 'I was making another comeback after two ACL knee injuries and the Bombers were the reigning premiers. I had just made my way back into the team. 'We had a mid-season competition involving interstate teams. I was asked to back up and play in Adelaide. In retrospect, that was a dumb idea. I wasn't ready to play three games in seven days. 'During the second quarter, I got caught in a pack, landed awkwardly, and did my knee again. This time it was my good knee. I was lying on a cold floor with ice on my knee in foreign rooms, on my own, as the sounds of the game continued without me. 'I knew my playing career was done at the elite level, and my crack at September — and maybe a flag — was over.' Daniher added that the impending birth of his first child helped him get out of the injury heartbreak. 'What broke me out of the funk was that I had married Jan earlier that year. Not much later, we received news that we would have our first child, Lauren. That definitely helped me realise that life was more than the number on my back.' Watson said being able to be hear his own voice would be terrific for his mate. 'I think it must be really great for him because of the frustration when you can't speak. For his words to be delivered in the way they can be — it must be a great thing for him. It might just alleviate some of that frustration,' he said. Watson was one of the first sliders to plunge into the icy waters, which has now become a rite of passage for sporting figures and celebrities during the Big Freeze. He said he didn't have any great words of advice for the 2025 sliders announced so far: Peter Daicos, Matt Shirvington, Ariarne Titmus, Mark Taylor, Matt Nable, and Liz Watson. 'Nothing really prepares people for how cold it feels when you first land,' he said. 'It awakens every sense, but it's over in the blink of an eye too. It's a really great experience.' Melbourne will be up against it in upsetting the red-hot Pies, but Watson said the Demons, coming off a loss to St Kilda, would 'rise to the occasion.' 'It's a big game. It doesn't really matter where they are on the ladder,' Watson said. 'There's a lot of tradition and rivalry associated with this game, and the fact that it means so much beyond the football field as well. It's celebrating something bigger than football. 'Melbourne will be trying to do the best they possibly can — not just for Neale, but for the game itself.' Unfiltered with Hamish McLachlan featuring football legend and FIGHTMND Founder, Neale Daniher 9.30pm straight after The Front Bar on Seven and 7plus. COVERAGE OF THE BIG FREEZE STARTS 2PM MONDAY AEDT ON 7 AND 7PLUS TO DONATE BY BUYING A DIGITAL BIG FREEZE BEANIE CLICK HERE
