'We take ownership': Cripps addresses Blues' tough year
Speaking publicly for the first time since Carlton's board guaranteed Voss would remain coach in 2026, Cripps insists the Blues can bounce back from a horror season.
Starting the year with ambitions of breaking a 30-year premiership drought following two-straight finals appearances, Carlton sit 14th with just seven wins ahead of the final two home-and-away games.
Pressure built from the Blues' long-suffering fan base, but incoming Carlton chief executive Graham Wright's recommendation Voss coach into the final year of his contract was approved by the club's board following a meeting on Wednesday.
"We've got a great relationship with 'Vossy'," Blues captain Cripps told AAP following Carlton's 19-point defeat to Gold Coast on Saturday night.
"It's easy in a tough year to point at one person, but I think as a collective, we're all basically taking ownership of where we're at, and that's club-wide.
"There's not one individual you can point the finger at.
"We're right behind him."
In 2023, his 10th AFL season, Cripps played his first final as Carlton made it through to the preliminary final - the Blues' best result in 23 years.
Carlton had sacked three coaches - Mick Malthouse, Brendon Bolton and David Teague - since they last played in a final series back in 2013.
"Basically the whole time since he's been here, you've got to understand the four years we've had under him, there's been a bit of a transformational shift in our footy club," Cripps said.
"We went from not playing finals for 10 years to, although not playing finals this year, we've experienced finals now.
"We're disappointed in this year, but we feel like we're gaining momentum, and we still feel like we've got a lot of potential on this list."
Carlton threatened to pull off a dramatic last-quarter heist against the Suns, quickly reeling in a 45-point deficit at the final change to get within 13 points, before ultimately falling short.
Cripps stressed it was important to finish off the year strongly to take momentum into 2026.
The season-ending injuries to stars such as Charlie Curnow and Sam Walsh has meant youngsters like Cooper Lord and Hudson O'Keeffe are getting valuable experience.
"We had a pretty inexperienced group out there (against Gold Coast)," Cripps said.
"The habits we're trying to implement now, we want to carry through to our pre-season.
"It was good for the whole team to feel the buzz and power of the crowd.
"I feel like the last couple of weeks, the energy around the place has really turned and I feel like guys are really starting to get some confidence back."
Cripps had his shoulder assessed against the Suns following a tackle on John Noble, but said it was merely a "stinger".
"This shoulder's always been banged up a little bit," he said.
"It just went a bit numb there for 15-to-20 minutes, which can happen sometimes, but it'll be fine."
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