AFL - Carlton review after 8 rounds

Pre-season I did up my predictions for how the Blues would travel this season, especially in the wake of losing Fev up forward. Many people thought that Carlton would fall to pieces without the big man doing the impossible in front of the goals and while I have to admit that I do miss the excitement that he would bring to the games, the new look forward lines is much better than anyone could have predicted and you could even go as far as saying it is better than it was with Fev sitting in the goal square

The following is the best 22 that I suggested preseason, based on last years form and form during the preseason:

PRESEASON

FB	Bower	Jamison	Joseph
HB	Gibbs	Thornton	Armfield
C	Simpson	McLean	Carrazzo
HF	Henderson	Waite	Houlihan
FF	Betts	Kreuzer	O'hAilpin
R	Hampson	Judd	Murphy
Int	Warnock	Russell	Yarran
Walker

AFTER ROUND 8

FB	Armfield	Jamison	Joseph
HB	Gibbs	Bower	Russell
C	Scotland	Simpson	Carrazzo
HF	Yarran	Waite	Houlihan
FF	Betts	O'hAilpin	Gartlett
R	Kreuzer	Judd	Murphy
Int	Jacobs	McLean	Thornton
Walker

The best 22 I have selected after 8 rounds is very close to the side that took on the Power over the weekend and came away with a gutsy win. The big changes that are obvious are the rucks.While preseason it was looking that big Robbie Warnock would play a big role this season, but form has seen him slide down to the seconds and with Hampson injured, Jacobs has been given more opportunities and really has been outstanding!

I wanted to go through each line and highlight how things are going and who has been outstanding.

Defense

Another year playing together and the back line is continuing to look very solid. The only negative this season has been the injuries sustained down back. Bower has missed a majority of the season through injury and just as Walker was starting to hit some very nice form he broke his collar bone. Thornton has been disappointing which lead to him spending some time with the Bullants, but hopefully through this he will learn he needs to lift his game and he can continue to be a solid man in defense and play as our 3rd big defender.

Standout: Jordan Russell - many commentators are saying he is the most improved player in the AFL and after seeing majority of his games this year that is 100% correct. You could almost go as far as saying he is in All Australian form at the moment. His disposal and run out of defense has been fantastic and there have been a number of occasions where he has toweled up normally exceptional opposition players (ie. Stevie Johnson). The emergence of Simon White and also Kane Lucas is extremely pleasing and demonstrates the potential that the Carlton list has to really give September a good shake. Last but not least Dennis Armfield...this man has speed. It is just such a pleasure to watch this guy break through the packs and leave the opposition in his wake as he pushes through the midfield and delivers the ball laces out to our forwards. He is just getting better and better and this is evident through his improved disposals.

Midfield

With the group we have, how can you go wrong? Judd is amazing form! Simpson continually steps up, Kreuzer and big Sauce are damaging in the ruck and Carrazzo continues to impress. While Murphy has been tagged quite heavily over the past few weeks, he is another player that when given an opportunity he always takes it and is very damaging on the scoreboard. The only downside is the lack of output from McLean who we got for trading away our first draft pick. While he has shown some flashes, he really needs to show more to justify his position, especially with the emergence of several other young stars in the Carlton side.

Standout: Chris Judd - after missing the opening three games through suspension, he has come in and has made sure that noone has forgotten that he is a deadset superstar...if not he best player in the AFL!  He is basically using his body as a battering ram in most situations, busting through packs and showing opposition taggers he is someone who is not to be messed with!

Forward

It was always a concern who would step up in the absense of Fevola and with the only major addition being that of Henderson from the Lions. While Henderson has not done a great deal to impress and subsequently is back playing with the reserves, the big surprise packet has been the combined efforts of the three small forwards in Betts, Yarran and Gartlett. While it there was doubt around whether they could all be played together, since they have been give the opportunity they have taken it with both hands and shown how damaging they can be together. Betts is in career best form and currently has 16 goals to his name. Gartlett is continuing to show why the fans love him and has kicked 12 since he was brought in. And Yarran is really starting to show he was justified in being taken at pick 6 in the draft with some amazing flashes of brilliance for a second year player. He currently has 14.6 to his name and possesses such awesome speed. But on top of that big Setanta has really stood up in the goal square and is consistently taking big grabs and slotting through good bags of goals each game. He currently sits 8th on the goal kicking table with 21 goals for the season and is really using his speed and body to get the better of opposition defenders. Finally the best news is that with the defense playing well, it has freed up big Jarrad Waite to play more up forward and with his first kick of the season he slotted through a great goal. He currently has 9 goals for the season and is playing a great role up forward.

Standout: The three indigenous boys - they are just amazing together...the array of articles talking them up over the past couple months is the proof of that.

Currently the Blues are sitting fifth on the ladder with 5 wins and 3 losses, and in all honesty 2 out of the 3 losses should have been wins if it wasnt for a poor show (against Essendon and Brisbane).

Carlton have claimed two big scalps already this season in Geelong and St.Kilda (both grand finalists from last year) and if they continue this run of form they should really give the top four a good shake. Injuries to Walker and Bower have been disappointing, but the depth of the side is really being highlighted at the current time and its really encouraging for the next 2-3 seasons.

The next 3-4 weeks "should" be penciled in as wins if Carlton really want to cement themselves as a force this year, as they are playing the likes of Melbourne, North Melbourne and West Coast.

So considering the first 8 weeks have been very challenging (multiple interstate trips and playing many tops sides) to be sitting 5th is a fantastic achievement and good signs of what is to come for the rest of the season.

Grade: 8/10