Recently appointed Carlton chief executive Cain Liddle says that the Blues will continue to invest in their young players and build a core that will push them towards their next premiership.
Liddle, who served at reigning premiers Richmond as chief customer officer for eight years before joining Carlton, says that the number one lesson he learned from his time at the Tigers was that taking shortcuts towards success never works.
While he can’t put a timeframe on when he expects to see the Blues return to the pinnacle, the club’s talented young list under coach Brendon Bolton gives him confidence that success will happen sooner rather than later.
“If I’ve learned one thing from Richmond, it is that you can’t take shortcuts,” Liddle told SEN Drive.
“The reality is that that is going to take a long time. When that time is, is it next year or the year after, I’m not quite sure and I’d be hesitant to put a time on it.
“What I can assure you is that Carlton are bringing some great young players, they’re investing in them and they’re going to get games to ensure that when the time is right, they are going to be prepared and win premierships for Carlton.”
Speaking on Bolton in particular, Liddle says that there are no plans to change his unique contract-less “employment agreement” with the club.
“Bolts is the only coach that doesn’t have an expiry date on his contract, so from that perspective, he’s here for a long time,” he said.
“We see him as the long-term coach at Carlton. He’s very well regarded and respected and has a terrific relationship with the players.
“I can absolutely see why Steven (former CEO Steven Trigg) made that decision a couple of years ago. Into the future that might be what Bolts and I agree is the right way to continue or we might decide that it’s time to change that, but at this stage it hasn’t been a conversation.”
Liddle also says that the club are happy with their current stadium arrangement with Etihad Stadium, which sees the Blues required to play six of their home games a year at the venue.
The Carlton chief says that despite pushing for additional home games at the MCG in the past, the club are much more content with the deal after the AFL took control of the stadium last year.
“Previously a club like Carlton were more motivated to get back to the G because of the deal with Etihad. That’s all been sorted out in the AFL purchase,” said Liddle.
“At this point in time we reckon the five and six split is fine.
“Moving forward, as we get crowds of 80,000 to 90,000 which have been regular for Carlton over the years, that might need to be something we need to reconsider because the last thing we want is for supporters to not be able to get into our games.”
Listen to Cain Liddle's chat with the boys on SEN Drive in the player below: