killpies wrote:
Carlton God wrote:
Option 1: Finish 16th with four wins and have no club to support in 2008.
Option 2: Finish 15th with six wins and Carlton don't die.
I never realised it was so black and white! I don't want Carlton to die so I will have to go for option two! I didn't realise two extra wins was the difference between Carlton surviving and not surviving until now! I will be cheering extra hard next year, every game is literally "a matter of life or death"! Go Blues!!
You're the one using 6 games as an example. We have to build momentum. If it is 6 games so be it, its called an improvement. I am still yet to see anyone who advocates tanking enunciate how we can move back up the ladder without having a year were we are also rans with about 6 to 8 wins, then next year maybe 10 - 13 then the year after 16 and challenge.
Success is NOT an on off switch. So if we dont have a transistional year then how do we do it?!?!?!?!
Spell it out cause we arent going from bottom to top in one year.
I never realised how truly bad our list was until early this year.
Before this year started my expectations were about 6-8 wins for 2006.
The club has had the luckiest draw of any side in the last two years, if the good luck turns to bad luck next year there might even be less wins than in 2006.
For 2007 my expectations have lowered to 3-5 wins.
If the club gets off to another bad start next year I will be dissapointed if we get more than 4 wins. The PP will mean picks 1 AND 2 next year.
It would be a huge positive for the club. We would then have picks 2, 1, 4, 1, 1, 2 in the team, most of which should be very good players. That is the basis for a top 4 team. That's all it is a basis, you still need to trade and draft well away from the first two rounds of the draft. But without a base, without a foundation you have no hope of breaking into the top 4.
IMO natural improvement will get the team back up into the 7+ wins bracket in 2008 and full steam ahead from there.
But what about memberships, money you say? All the club has to do is push the youth angle in much the same way that Hawthorn did in 2005. Make it very clear to all members that we will be playing as many youngsters as possible and that 2007 is first and foremost a development year. Give hope for the future but lower expectations all at the same time.
I was firmly in the anti-tank brigade, but the lure of Picks 1 and 2 next year is a once in a generation opportunity for the club.
If my expectations were for more than 8 wins then I would be wavering, but I cannot see a list as young as ours will be next year doing any better in terms of wins than this year.
I'm quite content now to endure one more year on the bottom.
Mind you though, if the Blues somehow win 3 or 4 of the first 8 games then I'll be ripping up my tanking club membership very quickly.
