Patrick Cripps has already proven he’s one of the star young midfielders in the competition, but is it time for Carlton to try something else?
Cripps is currently sitting second in the AFL Coaches Association voting, despite his team winning only one game in 2018.
Acutely aware of the midfield capabilities of the 23-year-old, SEN expert David King would like to see what Cripps looks like playing more time up forward.
“I talk about Carlton and I look at Patrick Cripps and we know what Cripps is, he plays 91 per cent midfield minutes every game they play,” he told SEN’s Whateley.
“You know what, we’ve got six games to play, you’re not going anywhere this year, put him forward and let him play as a forward for 40 per cent of the game-time and see what he can do.
“They need to have a look at this and trust others in the midfield to get some opportunity to win some clearances for us.”
SEN Chief Broadcaster Gerard Whateley saw a moment during Carlton’s loss to Hawthorn which backs up King.
“There was that one moment yesterday where he went forward, he beat (James) Frawley cold with a one-handed mark,” Whateley said.
Carlton has lost Zac Fisher (broken leg) and Liam Jones (knee) for the season and King doesn’t believe it’s fair to judge whether or not Brendon Bolton can coach with so many players on the sidelines.
“It’s very difficult to assess whether they’re great coaches when they haven’t got the stocks, but I often wonder what they’re doing outside of the norm to try and spark either some fresh intelligence or a new look,” he said.
The Blues will take on Gold Coast at Metricon Stadium on Saturday night and will be hoping to get their second win of the season against the 17th ranked team in the competition.