|
Venue: MCG | ||||||||||||||||||
| Date: Sun 15 June 2008, 2:10pm | Result: win by 30 points | ||||||||||||||||||
| Umpires: L. Farmer, H. Kennedy, J. Schmitt | Crowd: 80,310 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Goalkickers: Fevola 8, Waite, Scotland 2, Thornton, Armfield, Fisher, Wiggins, Stevens 1. | |||||||||||||||||||
| Reports: Nil | Injuries: Nil | Ladder Position: 8th | |||||||||||||||||
Game Review
At first, Carlton were dominant but errant up forward. Brendan Fevola would kick our first 2 goals, but miss a number of others. Fev was no doubt dominant as he carved up Harry O'Brien and Pie wonderkid Nathan Brown, but he missed some in-range shots that gave the Pies the sniff they needed. Within the next quarter or so, the Pies would wrest the advantage as the Blues continued to struggle in front of goal. Indeed, Bret Thornton would be our only goalkicker in the second, when in his 118th Carlton game he scored his 2nd league goal his only other league goal was in his 20th Carlton against Fremantle at Subiaco in Round 10, 2003!
The Pies went in ahead to the main break, but Carlton swung the changes and put 2008 Centre Half Back Jarrad Waite up forward and trusted the young defence of Gibbs, Jamison, Carrazzo and Setanta to carry the day. And did they ever! But the storyline was in front of goal, as Brendan Fevola surged with a number of chances and Waite, Scotland and Armfield kicked important goals. The scores were all tied up at the last break.
And then there was party time... Simon Wiggins kicked a brilliant snap, Brendan Fevola scored two amazing goals from the goal square (one of which was awarded the AFL Goal of the Week) as he kicked his 6th and 7th and the Blues went ahead. Adam Bentick nailed the ball for Nick Stevens to kick us clear, and the game was as good as won!
Heath Scotland played his 150th league game and scored 2 goals and this was also his 97th Carlton game and was also the third player to play this double at Carlton with the other two players being Billy Dick in Round 14, 1917 against Geelong at Corio Oval (who was also the captain) and Jack Wrout in Round 1, 1943 against Richmond at Princes Park.
For the third time during the season and the second time in two weeks, Brendan Fevola scored a goal after the final siren and all were in Carlton victories with the first against Melbourne in Round 5, 2008. He has now scored 54 goals against Collingwood from 16 matches at an average of 3.375 goals per game and is now third on the list of goalscorers against Collingwood behind Harry Vallence with 84 goals (from 22 matches at 3.818 goals per game) and Horrie Clover with 55 goals (from 18 matches at 3.056 goals per game). The only other player to score over 50 goals against Collingwood is Stephen Kernahan with 52 goals (from 22 matches at 2.364 goals per game).
This game is remembered fondly by Carlton fans, and is considered one of our best wins in the Home & Away rounds of the 2000's. For more games like this, please click here.
Team
| B: | 44 Andrew Carrazzo | 30 Jarrad Waite | 32 Bret Thornton |
| HB: | 40 Michael Jamison | 17 Setanta Ó hAilpín | 27 Dennis Armfield |
| C: | 6 Kade Simpson | 5 Chris Judd (c) | 29 Heath Scotland |
| HF: | 4 Bryce Gibbs | 14 Brad Fisher | 3 Marc Murphy |
| F: | 19 Eddie Betts | 25 Brendan Fevola | 8 Matthew Kreuzer |
| Ruck: | 28 Cameron Cloke | 16 Shaun Grigg | 24 Nick Stevens (vc) |
| Interchange: | 2 Jordan Russell | 7 Adam Bentick | 22 Shaun Hampson |
| 34 Simon Wiggins | |||
| Coach: | Brett Ratten | ||
| Emg: | 21 Mark Austin, 15 Steven Browne, 36 Darren Pfeiffer | ||
Video
Milestones
150 Games (AFL): Heath ScotlandThe Final 8: This game brought Carlton into the final 8 for the first time at the Round 12 stage of the year since 2001. Only Simon Wiggins would be in both Round 12 teams.
Goal kicking: Brendan Fevola kicked his 50th goal against Collingwood in this match.
Interesting Fact: Thornton's goal in this game was only the second in his career, the first being scored in Round 10, 2003
Brownlow Votes
3. Brendan Fevola, Carlton2. Marc Murphy, Carlton
1. Paul Medhurst, Collingwood
Best and Fairest Votes
45 Marc Murphy, 44 Brendan Fevola, 34 chris Judd, 32 Andrew Carrazzo, 31 Heath Scotland, 27 Kade Simpson, 23 Bret Thornton, 21 Cameron Cloke, 6 Adam Bentick, Bryce Gibbs, 5 Setanta o'hAilpinThe Ghost
It’s in black and white
Many have been the seasons, too many to count, except in the wrinkles, and the broken nails; the faces absent. For too long we have doubted, have lifted up the blue jumpers on our players and searched for the cut. For too many years we have secretly dreaded, have expected failure, have sought reasonable and excessive reasons why the loss.
No Longer!
For too long now we have hidden our true selves away. We have sat in the outer and been reasonable over 100 point losses, over losing ground to teams always beneath us. For too long now we have watched ourselves leaving early, have failed to teach the song to children, have cheered solitary goals rather than the ancient avalanche.
No Longer!
For game after game we have clutched at the fool’s goal of early leads, of tanking debates or the quest for youth. For too many games we have been happy if the damage was slight rather than suicidal. For too many games we have failed to record goals in the football record, or sought out the opposition on the train rides home.
No Longer!
For years now we have forestalled reading the Monday papers. Have disowned the team before the crows called three times; Judas’s, we have considered hanging our scarves in the recesses of the closet and pretend each loss does not matter: That rebuilding is easy and we are filled with infinite patience.
No Longer!
This is a call. A call to the Bluebagger army. A call to let loose our voices, to sing and strut and swagger, to expect this side to never surrender, to expect a win every time they run out onto the ground. We are no longer the brittle, fearful children of yesterday. We are fast cementing ourselves into a formidable unit.
Twice now when all seemed lost and the weaknesses fed during the dark years rose up and whispered ‘we are gone, we are truly gone’, twice now the call has been wrong. That was the call when we were weak, when we were boys, when we had more holes than a mouth of Collingwood teeth.
No longer do we need to doubt, to quiver, and to expect a rout. So this, this call from the stands, this cry for our beloved bluebaggers, this shout of welcome back! This is a call to arms. Come out, come out where ever you are! Each and every bluebagger farther and bluebagger son, each and every Old Dark Navy mother and her cherished Old Dark Navy daughter! This is a cry to fill the stands, start the flood, the navy blue flood of returning to the promised land.
We have wandered our desert, we have been tested and broken and rebuilt. We have crossed the seas of other sides, watched ourselves drown in their goals, and swam in their songs, wept at their joy. And we have grown strong.
This then is our song. Our song of return. The first time we beat Collingwood there were excuses written in black and white, in every paper, read from behind every reporting desk, spoken about at coffee breaks and smokos across this great town.
Everyone agreed it said nothing about Collingwood and little about us, that first win. It was, to all intents and purposes, a write off!
Well write this off!
4 goals down then suddenly we have drawn level. Goal for goal and then we slam on goal after goal. 2 in the last 2 minutes. We are back in the real game and Collingwood have no answers.
No answers to Judd no matter how hard the tag, no answers to Murph who showed their two ‘high picks’ to be front-runners, not possessing the gut busting run and steely determination of our beloved Murph! No answers to the rotation, to AB’s fanatical tackling, to the bravery of Griggs and Armfield, to the mad Irishman’s conquest of the wrong Cloke.
No answer to why they handed us the right Cloke, whose heart must be bigger than his chest. And they have not a single idea of how to cope with Fev! How Fev must wish every week was a black and white week. He’d break 150 before the mid season break!
And so this time in black and white, in every paper and read out by every reporter, the truth of the matter, the fact. We are back and we are in the 8. We are back and just like in times of old we may be down but we are never out of it. We are back and Collingwood have no answers to us. We are the 44 point comeback, the ‘Jesaulenko you beauty’ mark, the Wayne Harmes punch to Sheldon in the square. We are the back and white’s worst Nightmare!
And so this cry, this navy Blue call to each and every supporter to come out of the woodwork, to set sail again on the bluebagger ocean of joy, come and see us smash the Dons this weekend. Come and merge with the sea of us, the ocean of bluebaggers who are back, singing strong and joyous that the side has been returned to us.
This is the Carlton we know!
I have always loved Jezza, my father enshrined Big Nick in each of his children’s hearts, and Doully and Johnno are my brothers’ favourites but now, now is the time of the Ratt!
Some come along this weekend, don your scarves and jumpers, fill the flasks and make the sandwiches, bring your pens and buy the footy records, the Blues are back in town and this weekend, this sacred Sunday we will obliterate the Bombers.
Judd and Murph and Stevo, Scotland the brave and AB in the middle. Rotate them with Gibbs, JR (the lastquaterman), Eddie and the rest and the bomber midfield will spin like a wounded bird, falling into the hallowed turf, their supporters experiencing our lost misery.
Who will stop the avalanche as we press forward? Who will stand up to our unrelenting pressure and never say die attitude? No one, for in truth, the Bombers have no one capable of resisting the Navy Blue Tide.
So get along this Sunday. Forget the heartaches of the past few years, forget the pain and the tears, bring your voice and your smiles, bring your victorious fists and dancing feet. This weekend we’ll add another victory and make it three in a row!
Fev for 5
Murph for 3
AB for BOG.
Go Blues!
No Longer!
For too long now we have hidden our true selves away. We have sat in the outer and been reasonable over 100 point losses, over losing ground to teams always beneath us. For too long now we have watched ourselves leaving early, have failed to teach the song to children, have cheered solitary goals rather than the ancient avalanche.
No Longer!
For game after game we have clutched at the fool’s goal of early leads, of tanking debates or the quest for youth. For too many games we have been happy if the damage was slight rather than suicidal. For too many games we have failed to record goals in the football record, or sought out the opposition on the train rides home.
No Longer!
For years now we have forestalled reading the Monday papers. Have disowned the team before the crows called three times; Judas’s, we have considered hanging our scarves in the recesses of the closet and pretend each loss does not matter: That rebuilding is easy and we are filled with infinite patience.
No Longer!
This is a call. A call to the Bluebagger army. A call to let loose our voices, to sing and strut and swagger, to expect this side to never surrender, to expect a win every time they run out onto the ground. We are no longer the brittle, fearful children of yesterday. We are fast cementing ourselves into a formidable unit.
Twice now when all seemed lost and the weaknesses fed during the dark years rose up and whispered ‘we are gone, we are truly gone’, twice now the call has been wrong. That was the call when we were weak, when we were boys, when we had more holes than a mouth of Collingwood teeth.
No longer do we need to doubt, to quiver, and to expect a rout. So this, this call from the stands, this cry for our beloved bluebaggers, this shout of welcome back! This is a call to arms. Come out, come out where ever you are! Each and every bluebagger farther and bluebagger son, each and every Old Dark Navy mother and her cherished Old Dark Navy daughter! This is a cry to fill the stands, start the flood, the navy blue flood of returning to the promised land.
We have wandered our desert, we have been tested and broken and rebuilt. We have crossed the seas of other sides, watched ourselves drown in their goals, and swam in their songs, wept at their joy. And we have grown strong.
This then is our song. Our song of return. The first time we beat Collingwood there were excuses written in black and white, in every paper, read from behind every reporting desk, spoken about at coffee breaks and smokos across this great town.
Everyone agreed it said nothing about Collingwood and little about us, that first win. It was, to all intents and purposes, a write off!
Well write this off!
4 goals down then suddenly we have drawn level. Goal for goal and then we slam on goal after goal. 2 in the last 2 minutes. We are back in the real game and Collingwood have no answers.
No answers to Judd no matter how hard the tag, no answers to Murph who showed their two ‘high picks’ to be front-runners, not possessing the gut busting run and steely determination of our beloved Murph! No answers to the rotation, to AB’s fanatical tackling, to the bravery of Griggs and Armfield, to the mad Irishman’s conquest of the wrong Cloke.
No answer to why they handed us the right Cloke, whose heart must be bigger than his chest. And they have not a single idea of how to cope with Fev! How Fev must wish every week was a black and white week. He’d break 150 before the mid season break!
And so this time in black and white, in every paper and read out by every reporter, the truth of the matter, the fact. We are back and we are in the 8. We are back and just like in times of old we may be down but we are never out of it. We are back and Collingwood have no answers to us. We are the 44 point comeback, the ‘Jesaulenko you beauty’ mark, the Wayne Harmes punch to Sheldon in the square. We are the back and white’s worst Nightmare!
And so this cry, this navy Blue call to each and every supporter to come out of the woodwork, to set sail again on the bluebagger ocean of joy, come and see us smash the Dons this weekend. Come and merge with the sea of us, the ocean of bluebaggers who are back, singing strong and joyous that the side has been returned to us.
This is the Carlton we know!
I have always loved Jezza, my father enshrined Big Nick in each of his children’s hearts, and Doully and Johnno are my brothers’ favourites but now, now is the time of the Ratt!
Some come along this weekend, don your scarves and jumpers, fill the flasks and make the sandwiches, bring your pens and buy the footy records, the Blues are back in town and this weekend, this sacred Sunday we will obliterate the Bombers.
Judd and Murph and Stevo, Scotland the brave and AB in the middle. Rotate them with Gibbs, JR (the lastquaterman), Eddie and the rest and the bomber midfield will spin like a wounded bird, falling into the hallowed turf, their supporters experiencing our lost misery.
Who will stop the avalanche as we press forward? Who will stand up to our unrelenting pressure and never say die attitude? No one, for in truth, the Bombers have no one capable of resisting the Navy Blue Tide.
So get along this Sunday. Forget the heartaches of the past few years, forget the pain and the tears, bring your voice and your smiles, bring your victorious fists and dancing feet. This weekend we’ll add another victory and make it three in a row!
Fev for 5
Murph for 3
AB for BOG.
Go Blues!
Mike and Dan
Play of the Week: Simon Wiggins
In what must rank as one of Carlton’s best moments in the past 5 years, the Blues beat a strong Collingwood team in front of an 80,000 strong crowd at the home of football, with a top eight position a deserved reward. Fevola’s goals, and a double midfield act from Murphy and Judd stole most of the post-match limelight, but the desperation shown by the team to claw back from a four goal deficit in the third quarter paved the way for another last quarter goal fest. Simon Wiggins wins Mike and Dan’s Play of the Week for his crucial snap on goal in the last quarter which put Carlton 7 points up and on its way to a memorable victory.
Simon, you have won Mike and Dan’s Play of the Week for your great snap on goal at a vital time in the last quarter. You had a bit of a burst in that time taking a strong contested mark and kicking a goal in the next minute or so. Can you talk us through the goal?
There was a bit of a scrum in the forward pocket, and there were a few players on top of the ball. The ball was just sitting there, so I burst out of there and threw it on my boot. I had been practicing a bit too much on my left this season and it was pretty funny situation as I had kicked one out on full against Brisbane even though I hadn’t missed one on training track. But this time I managed to pull it off with my left foot.
It was a pretty huge game against Collingwood, but usually it is quite hard to tell how big crowd is when you are playing. But when each team was kicking a goal, particularly in the third quarter, you could hear the crowd roar and could tell that the stadium was almost full.
What was the mood like in the rooms after the game? Did Armfield get into the circle this time to sing the song?
Yeah we got him in there this time! Last week against Port Adelaide, there were about 15 cameras in the middle of the circle and 14 photographers with them so he couldn’t squeeze in if he had tried!
The last couple of weeks we have had some really good wins, and at the ground and in the rooms, all the faithful supporters have been there for us and have got involved which is great to see.
After a great win last week and then backing up with Sunday’s performance, how much confidence has it given the side? Did the belief and momentum from the win against Port carry over to Collingwood?
I think so, obviously we had our backs against the wall in both games, particularly the Port Adelaide game. I didn’t give us much hope in that game, it was an amazing effort against Port in difficult conditions for football. This week, we came into the last quarter in dry conditions which made it easier to kick quick goals, and it was not going to be as difficult to get a run on compared to last week.
I think against Collingwood we had better fitness and run in our legs and were fresher than they were coming into the last quarter. You could see at three quarter time that some of their players were slumped over and obviously feeling it.
In our training and fitness we get very specific with each individual. We have wellbeing surveys that we do before each training session, and the training staff put it into some equation. Some players might need rest to get their energy levels up, or have a lighter week depending on their condition.
We have now got 3 games against sides outside the eight. Has the coach told you what he expects from the next few games?
We have a big month of footy coming up. At the start of year we should have won against Essendon and now we get the opportunity to play them again. We just focus on a contest by contest, and session by session basis.
It is a very important time and it is very exciting to be around the club at the moment. This is my 8th year at the club, and the last time we were in the eight at this time of the season was in 2001. To come out of the game against Collingwood in 8th position was just fantastic. There has been so much hard work and also so much disappointment for players and supporters over the years, and to have the side into the 8 was an amazing feeling, but the hard work has just started, there’s plenty left to do.
After missing the first 6 rounds, you have now put together 6 consecutive games. What are your goals for the rest of the year?
I want to stay in the side, I have been through too much over the club over seven full years with a lot of disappointments along the way, and now we are starting to have some success on the field and I want to be involved in that, I really want to be part of it.
We now have confidence going into games, and I was talking to my wife this morning about exactly that! This is what footy is supposed to be like, we have copped a walloping for so long and it is now falling into place. I want to keep learning and keep improving and be involved more in the club.
I am happy to get a game anywhere, but I like playing at half forward, it is a good position and suits me as I prefer the running bursts instead of the long endurance stuff. That position suits my running capacity, and I think I work well with Fish and Fev up there. But it really doesn’t worry me, Ratts sees me as a utility, I feel very comfortable with that and I think he knows that he can put me in most places on the field.
You have now played 95 games for the club. How important is it to you to reach that 100 game milestone?
It is important, it is very important, I want it really badly! It is a week to week thing, and it is something you always think about it. For my entire career I have always looked at the names on my locker, like Robertson, Marcou, and De Iulio, there is 100 years of history there and I want to be a part of it!
You’ve been at the Club a long while now, and there hasn’t been much success in that time. What is it about the club that feels a bit different this year?
Everything feels really good about the club at the moment. Off the field things are so good, and no disrespect to previous years, but it is now a really welcoming environment and we are working together and improving as a team. With the professionalism of Judd and the great atmosphere amongst the playing group, it is a great place to be around.
Young Aaron Joseph is from your old Tasmanian Club Glenorchy. Have you had much time to take him under your wing and help him settle in?
Yeah I have had a few chats with AJ, he is a really good kid and self sufficient for his age. He left home at 15 from Strachan to live in Hobart and doesn’t need to rely on other people. We have both done the interstate thing, and it is good that we have two players from the same Tasmanian club.
The chances of the proposed Tasmanian team in the competition appear to be slim as the AFL prefers teams from Western Sydney and the Gold Coast. What are your thoughts about a Tasmanian team entering the competition?
To be honest it is a bit rude how they can offer a side to West Sydney when it is a non-football state which already has a team. Obviously for it to be a national competition they need a team from Tasmania, and hopefully one day that could happen.
They will have a better chance if they sort out the north/south issue there which is a real divide in Tasmania. For example if south get the cricket, north want the footy and there is a real rivalry there, so they really need to get on board and support the one team.
How is the Education degree going? Are you still ploughing through it?
I am still creeping through it more like it! I am in my eighth year now, I almost consider myself an academic now! It is going well and there is a light at the end of the tunnel now, although it becomes harder and harder when I am playing footy as time outside the club is limited.
How is your wife Loudy going after missing Olympic Diving selection through injury? Has it spurred you on in the realization that careers can end in the blink of an eye?
Yeah it is a sad situation, and so frustrating. It is really in our face in the moment with Olympic selection stories everywhere, and all Loudy’s plans were to go to Beijing. It seems ridiculous how a policy can be so strict when it comes down to selection based on just one competition, where she did her calf and can’t be considered for selection.
In football if we do a calf, we wait for a week or two and then get back onto the field, whereas in diving one incident leads to this situation. It is obviously very hard for her, she has been doing it since she was 14 years old and has had a 15 year career. In terms of my footy, it definitely makes me think you have to make the most of it because you never know what is going to happen with injuries.
Your player partner is a massage therapist, and your player sponsor is a financial planner. Do you get free massages and financial tips?
I have Bob and Julie from Bob Quadara Financial Planning who have sponsored me since I first came over, and they have given me a bit of financial planning advice which was much appreciated. Krystina Brown is my player partner and is a massage therapist, and she has given me and Loudy the massage treatment, which has come in very handy!
Anything you want to say about any of your teammates’ annoying habits?
Blackwell is a bit of a pest, but I have to say that Mark Austin is one of the biggest ratbags going around! The wives and girlfriends think he will be a bit of a hit with the ladies!
Approaching 100 games and considered a veteran at 25 years of age, Simon Wiggins is possibly the most passionate Carlton player that Mike and Dan have interviewed with his obvious deep affection for the Navy Blue. Wiggins has been a brave, committed, dependable, and consistent player since his recruitment in the 2000 National Draft, and has made a sizeable contribution to the increasing on-field success at the club. A life membership is tantalizingly close for Wiggins, and no-one would be more deserving than the popular Tasmanian utility.
Simon, you have won Mike and Dan’s Play of the Week for your great snap on goal at a vital time in the last quarter. You had a bit of a burst in that time taking a strong contested mark and kicking a goal in the next minute or so. Can you talk us through the goal?
There was a bit of a scrum in the forward pocket, and there were a few players on top of the ball. The ball was just sitting there, so I burst out of there and threw it on my boot. I had been practicing a bit too much on my left this season and it was pretty funny situation as I had kicked one out on full against Brisbane even though I hadn’t missed one on training track. But this time I managed to pull it off with my left foot.
It was a pretty huge game against Collingwood, but usually it is quite hard to tell how big crowd is when you are playing. But when each team was kicking a goal, particularly in the third quarter, you could hear the crowd roar and could tell that the stadium was almost full.
What was the mood like in the rooms after the game? Did Armfield get into the circle this time to sing the song?
Yeah we got him in there this time! Last week against Port Adelaide, there were about 15 cameras in the middle of the circle and 14 photographers with them so he couldn’t squeeze in if he had tried!
The last couple of weeks we have had some really good wins, and at the ground and in the rooms, all the faithful supporters have been there for us and have got involved which is great to see.
After a great win last week and then backing up with Sunday’s performance, how much confidence has it given the side? Did the belief and momentum from the win against Port carry over to Collingwood?
I think so, obviously we had our backs against the wall in both games, particularly the Port Adelaide game. I didn’t give us much hope in that game, it was an amazing effort against Port in difficult conditions for football. This week, we came into the last quarter in dry conditions which made it easier to kick quick goals, and it was not going to be as difficult to get a run on compared to last week.
I think against Collingwood we had better fitness and run in our legs and were fresher than they were coming into the last quarter. You could see at three quarter time that some of their players were slumped over and obviously feeling it.
In our training and fitness we get very specific with each individual. We have wellbeing surveys that we do before each training session, and the training staff put it into some equation. Some players might need rest to get their energy levels up, or have a lighter week depending on their condition.
We have now got 3 games against sides outside the eight. Has the coach told you what he expects from the next few games?
We have a big month of footy coming up. At the start of year we should have won against Essendon and now we get the opportunity to play them again. We just focus on a contest by contest, and session by session basis.
It is a very important time and it is very exciting to be around the club at the moment. This is my 8th year at the club, and the last time we were in the eight at this time of the season was in 2001. To come out of the game against Collingwood in 8th position was just fantastic. There has been so much hard work and also so much disappointment for players and supporters over the years, and to have the side into the 8 was an amazing feeling, but the hard work has just started, there’s plenty left to do.
After missing the first 6 rounds, you have now put together 6 consecutive games. What are your goals for the rest of the year?
I want to stay in the side, I have been through too much over the club over seven full years with a lot of disappointments along the way, and now we are starting to have some success on the field and I want to be involved in that, I really want to be part of it.
We now have confidence going into games, and I was talking to my wife this morning about exactly that! This is what footy is supposed to be like, we have copped a walloping for so long and it is now falling into place. I want to keep learning and keep improving and be involved more in the club.
I am happy to get a game anywhere, but I like playing at half forward, it is a good position and suits me as I prefer the running bursts instead of the long endurance stuff. That position suits my running capacity, and I think I work well with Fish and Fev up there. But it really doesn’t worry me, Ratts sees me as a utility, I feel very comfortable with that and I think he knows that he can put me in most places on the field.
You have now played 95 games for the club. How important is it to you to reach that 100 game milestone?
It is important, it is very important, I want it really badly! It is a week to week thing, and it is something you always think about it. For my entire career I have always looked at the names on my locker, like Robertson, Marcou, and De Iulio, there is 100 years of history there and I want to be a part of it!
You’ve been at the Club a long while now, and there hasn’t been much success in that time. What is it about the club that feels a bit different this year?
Everything feels really good about the club at the moment. Off the field things are so good, and no disrespect to previous years, but it is now a really welcoming environment and we are working together and improving as a team. With the professionalism of Judd and the great atmosphere amongst the playing group, it is a great place to be around.
Young Aaron Joseph is from your old Tasmanian Club Glenorchy. Have you had much time to take him under your wing and help him settle in?
Yeah I have had a few chats with AJ, he is a really good kid and self sufficient for his age. He left home at 15 from Strachan to live in Hobart and doesn’t need to rely on other people. We have both done the interstate thing, and it is good that we have two players from the same Tasmanian club.
The chances of the proposed Tasmanian team in the competition appear to be slim as the AFL prefers teams from Western Sydney and the Gold Coast. What are your thoughts about a Tasmanian team entering the competition?
To be honest it is a bit rude how they can offer a side to West Sydney when it is a non-football state which already has a team. Obviously for it to be a national competition they need a team from Tasmania, and hopefully one day that could happen.
They will have a better chance if they sort out the north/south issue there which is a real divide in Tasmania. For example if south get the cricket, north want the footy and there is a real rivalry there, so they really need to get on board and support the one team.
How is the Education degree going? Are you still ploughing through it?
I am still creeping through it more like it! I am in my eighth year now, I almost consider myself an academic now! It is going well and there is a light at the end of the tunnel now, although it becomes harder and harder when I am playing footy as time outside the club is limited.
How is your wife Loudy going after missing Olympic Diving selection through injury? Has it spurred you on in the realization that careers can end in the blink of an eye?
Yeah it is a sad situation, and so frustrating. It is really in our face in the moment with Olympic selection stories everywhere, and all Loudy’s plans were to go to Beijing. It seems ridiculous how a policy can be so strict when it comes down to selection based on just one competition, where she did her calf and can’t be considered for selection.
In football if we do a calf, we wait for a week or two and then get back onto the field, whereas in diving one incident leads to this situation. It is obviously very hard for her, she has been doing it since she was 14 years old and has had a 15 year career. In terms of my footy, it definitely makes me think you have to make the most of it because you never know what is going to happen with injuries.
Your player partner is a massage therapist, and your player sponsor is a financial planner. Do you get free massages and financial tips?
I have Bob and Julie from Bob Quadara Financial Planning who have sponsored me since I first came over, and they have given me a bit of financial planning advice which was much appreciated. Krystina Brown is my player partner and is a massage therapist, and she has given me and Loudy the massage treatment, which has come in very handy!
Anything you want to say about any of your teammates’ annoying habits?
Blackwell is a bit of a pest, but I have to say that Mark Austin is one of the biggest ratbags going around! The wives and girlfriends think he will be a bit of a hit with the ladies!
Approaching 100 games and considered a veteran at 25 years of age, Simon Wiggins is possibly the most passionate Carlton player that Mike and Dan have interviewed with his obvious deep affection for the Navy Blue. Wiggins has been a brave, committed, dependable, and consistent player since his recruitment in the 2000 National Draft, and has made a sizeable contribution to the increasing on-field success at the club. A life membership is tantalizingly close for Wiggins, and no-one would be more deserving than the popular Tasmanian utility.
Round 11 | Round 13