Ahh... the Bummer argument... we'll be a powerhouse in three years time?

btw Throbbie... Malthouse coached the Pois to two grand finals in his first five years.

Such a nothing article... typical

Yet the "tanking" gifted them one amazing player and one very handy anti-racism player...

If you look at another sport where "Tanking" can occur, look at NFL. The Colts lose their starting QB Manning early in their campaign. One of the best QBs in the league, probably up there with brother Eli and Tom Brady.

Colts effectively shut down the season and went for the number one pick to get the next big franchise QB for Manning. They put games into rookies. They won just two games in regular season. You might say they could have been rubbish anyway.

Perhaps, but the Colts were in post season for 9 seasons straight, which would be 11 seasons if not for a blip in 2001. Not only that, the were AFC Champions in 09, and division champions in 2010. That's not a team who are going to go down quickly unless, but their best man went down for the season.

So they tanked. I watched a few of their games, and they definitely played with an intention to develop regardless of the result.

The result was they drafted wonder kid Andrew Luck who looked THAT good at College level, he's potentially going to bring a dynasty of success around him at the Colts. They will be back very quickly, if not this season (although thats a lot of pressure on a rookie QB).

I'm not sure why such tactics are frowned upon. Ultimately its about the long term success of the club. Carlton have done it. Other teams have.

The issue now is that we got our "Andrew Lucks" in Murphy, Gibbs (arguably) and Kreuzer, but the development of a champion team around them perhaps has faltered. Or has it?

That is the question that must be answered this season. Is Ratten the man to maximize the return?

I am probably in the NO bucket. I do not believe he is a good thinker or strategist during the game. Even last year when Carlton had a purple patch of success that almost had a Prelim.

But maybe it is a yes. Afterall, the situation has been shown that with injuries to key 1st choice personnel, the 2nd tier and youth has been shown to be not ready for the AFL system.

This was adjusted in the off season with the introduction of the Northern Blues and with the recruitment of Hyde who IS a proven talent developer. The benefits of that setup will take more than one season to come to fruition. So you can say that what is a problem will no longer be because the steps have been taken to get that 2nd tier/youth system right.

So ultimately it boils down to:

1 - we have a coach who is probably in the "good" bracket without being "outstanding" as a match day coach.
2 - we have a fantastic A-team which, when out on the park and fit, can beat ANYONE (except Hawthorn maybe)
3 - when our best team is not out on the park, our backups are not ready to back up. Coaching issue or development issue?
3a - if development issue, we can say that the steps have been put in place to remove that
3b - if a coaching issue, then regardless of the impact of 3a, Carlton will still lose games when the opposition is far better tactically of controlling momentum when the game is on the line

As a result, I don't think a premiership can be won in this situation.

But that's just my opinion.

I think the fundamental question we are all asking is "Ratten has obvious coaching deficiencies today, can he learn from his experiences and improve and develop as coach?"

An astute choice will be made - but it mightn't appear that way at the time.

Blueman, I'm really warming to your posts.

I think they are complete bat guano but, like my daily horoscope, I'm drawn to them and secretly wish they would come true.

Blueman, I'm really warming to your posts.

I think they are complete bat guano but, like my daily horoscope, I'm drawn to them and secretly wish they would come true.