David Teague had the tough task in the middle of 2019 of taking over a team stuck down the bottom of the ladder.
He did a valiant job, with the Blues winning five of their last 10 games and he was rewarded with the full-time coaching gig.
Now in his first pre-season in charge, Teague has worked quickly to shape the club the way he wants it, according to veteran defender Kade Simpson.
“He obviously gets to put a bit more of his stamp on things. I think when you take over mid-year you can’t really change too much, all the structures and that sort of thing are in place,” Simpson told SEN's Dwayne's World.
“He’s definitely given the players a bit of a licence to design our game plan and what’s going to best suit us.
“We’ve been training and from the way we’ve been training, He has really tried to define a game plan around us. I think it’s going really well at the moment, I know the boys are really enjoying his energy.”
As for how Carlton will play in 2020, Simpson believes the club will look to continue the aggressive style that Teague implemented when he took over.
“I think that it will change from week-to-week, but it’s no secret that we want to score more,” he said.
“A lot of your scoring opportunities can come from a good defence. There’s no secret, we probably need to work on all aspects of our game.
“We’ve sort of tinkered with everything. Sometimes you’ll play guys up around the ball, other times you’ll try and stretch teams but that will change week-to-week on the opposition.”