Blues’ issues explored after Opening Rd collapse — and ‘biggest question’ that needs answer

One game into the 2026 season, and we’re already asking for answers from the Blues.

For Carlton supporters who haven’t been able to gauge the crux of the game plan – or continue to question whether the club has the personnel to play a certain way – the second half on Thursday night would have emphasised a deflating reality.

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But before a 12-goal Sydney third term, the first two quarters were cause for genuine Blues optimism – getting first use with a hard contested edge, generating forward-half opportunities, and applying defensive heat on the Swans.

The issue was the fact that, like in the recent past, Carlton couldn’t capitalise on its bevy of chances to establish a comfortable lead at the SCG.

When Ben Ainsworth goaled at the 23-minute mark of the second quarter to put the visitors three points ahead, it was just the second score from their previous 19 forward-50 entries, speaking to a familiar issue.

Led by the likes of Sam Walsh, Patrick Cripps and George Hewett, Carlton was plus-21 for contested possessions in the first half last night – its third-best return in a half since the start of 2025.

The Blues also recorded 31 more uncontested possessions than the Swans and forced the home side into mistakes going the other way – but in a foreshadowing sign, they only took a 10-point lead into the main change.

“At half-time, you felt like they should have had a four, five-goal lead – so I guess you’ve got to look at that first, and then work out what happened in the third term,” two-time flag-winner David King said during Fox Footy’s post-match coverage.

“Did the young players fail with their responsibilities – which you have to learn to live with a little bit along the way – (or) are they trying to play a style that just doesn’t suit this group? That’s probably the biggest question coming from this.

“Are they contest-winners that lack a little bit of polish and class on the outside – are they trying to force them to be that (classy on the outside), when that fundamentally is not them?”

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Walsh was Carlton’s best on the night with 32 disposals and eight score involvements, but not enough of his teammates came with him when it mattered.

Nine of Ollie Florent’s 16 kicks were effective, while Jagga Smith had five effective kicks from 27 disposals. And despite their contested ball-winning capability, Cripps and Hewett combined for eight effective kicks on Thursday night.

Saints great Leigh Montagna concurred, also raising a foot speed issue – with Swans Errol Gulden and Justin McInerney running rampant the other way.

“And that’s the concern, too, with the players they’ve got. You watch Sydney’s powerful run, and they can all run and transition,” he said on Fox Footy.

“Now, it was clear that Sam Walsh stood out, you can see Jagga Smith can go with Walsh, but how many other Carlton players in that team can run like those Sydney mids?

“So, that’s going to be the question. But even in that first half, they were dominating so many aspects of the game but weren’t able to put any score on the board, so that also makes it hard for them … it’s going to be, I think, a difficult year for the Blues and Michael Voss.”

Hawthorn legend Jason Dunstall reiterated the Blues’ brutal reality, explaining the futility of their contest-heavy approach without being able to really damage with ball use.

“They have to change the way they play,” he said post-match.

“Are they just going to be that contested bull that lacks a bit of polish? That doesn’t win enough games. That doesn’t get it done.

“There are plenty of teams that’ll cop getting beaten at the contest, because they know they’ll win it back at half-back, and then their skill will be superior, and they’ll beat you on the scoreboard that way.

“So, just winning contest, being good at the contested ball, or being good at clearances and then lacking the polish to use the ball … they should have been four or five goals up, but they weren’t, because of that lack of polish.

“And the thing is, you can identify what you need, but you can’t just wave a wand and get it all in in one off-season – it takes time … they’ve got some real problems.”

Several examples in the third quarter demonstrated the way the Swans were able to exploit the Blues getting sucked into the contest by swiftly spreading to the outside once possession was won.

“It was clear in that third term how quickly, or instantaneously, the Swans were able to outnumber Carlton on the outside,” King said post-match.

“It was Heeney early, and I’m not sure who his direct matchup was, because they were playing games as to whether they were rolling up as forwards, or whether they were actual true midfielders.

“I think Carlton got confused, and in the end, didn’t defend at all and left their backs on an island.”

Watch the Fox panel’s breakdown in the video player below:

Carlton’s desire to be a contest-first team proved costly when it couldn’t win the ball at the source, leaving Michael Voss’ side hapless in transition on numerous occasions.

The Swans scored 53 points from their defensive half on Thursday night – their second-best return for a match since the start of last year.

“It was interesting, when you asked Chad Warner (about the Swans’ approach) he said ‘definitely a plan’,” Montagna said.

“Now, whether against Carlton it’s a plan – because maybe they identified that Carlton is a team that does hunt the ball and maybe doesn’t spread as well – or maybe it’s something they’re trying to do against the rest of the competition and get that advantage.”

Warner had confirmed to the Fox Footy panel minutes earlier that Sydney wanted to get out ahead and expose Michael Voss’ side with outside run.

“Yeah, definitely,” he said.

“That’s one of our strengths, over the past few years – we’ve got great runners, power runners, and we have a good couple of roles forward of the stoppage.

“Trying to fight forward, get the ball in their hands and really test them out the front of the (contest) bubble.”

And while Voss in his post-game press conference refused to overreact to one loss, how the under-fire coach handles his playing group after Thursday night’s loss is absolutely crucial.

That wasn’t lost on Montagna, who warned of potential “scarring” in a similar fashion to the start of last season, when the Blues coughed up a seven-goal lead against Richmond which dictated the tone of their season.

“It will be fascinating to see how Michael Voss does address this with his team right now,” Montagna said on Fox Footy.

“If you remember 12 months ago against Richmond (in Round 1), they were 40 points up against and then absolutely capitulated and got beaten.

“I know it was a different opposition, but that scarred them, and they went on to lose their first four games, and their season was basically done and dusted.

“They’re shell-shocked but hopefully not scarred by this performance, and I think how Michael Voss speaks to this group now is going to be significant for the rest of the season.”

The Blues have winnable upcoming fixtures with Richmond, Melbourne and North Melbourne as they aim to avoid another sluggish start to the season.