CARLTON'S failure to close out Friday night's game against the Western Bulldogs exposed a serious tactical error, says former AFLW All-Australian Kate McCarthy.
Carlton was once again outplayed in the final quarter as the Dogs kicked the final two goals of the game to win by eight points.
The Blues have been outscored by 89 points in second halves to start the year, giving up leads of 41, 11 and 24 points to slump to a 0-3 start to the season.
While the slow finishes have raised questions about Carlton's fitness, McCarthy told AFL.com.au's The Round So Far that fourth-quarter interchange issues on Friday night contributed to the late fadeout.
"The thing that I'm looking at is the tactical side of things," McCarthy said.
"In the last four minutes of that game, we saw (Aaron) Naughton pop up and kick a goal. (Jack) Silvagni, (Charlie) Curnow and (Sam) Walsh were all on the bench. They're three of your bigger role players in the team.
"The only time [Naughton] kicked a goal or took a mark inside 50 was actually when Silvagni was off the ground.
"You need [Silvagni, Curnow and Walsh] out there if you're going to win a game of football, and their percentage and their game time from their mids just seems to be a little bit skewed at the moment.
"(Adam) Cerra and Walsh only played 66-67 per cent of that fourth quarter. They're the players you need when big moments are happening on the field."
With the ball stuck on the far wing at a crucial moment in the final term, Cerra (66 per cent), Walsh (67 per cent) and Curnow (79 per cent) made up three of the Blues' six lowest time on ground percentages in the last quarter, while Silvagni had 80 per cent.
Only Jacob Weitering and Matthew Cottrell spent 100 per cent of time on the ground for Carlton in the final term, while young midfielder Ryley Sanders was the only Bulldog to have less than 70 per cent game time.
As the Blues prepare to take on a well-rested Collingwood side on Thursday night at the MCG, they only have to look at the Magpies, who closed out their own final quarter against the Bulldogs a week earlier.
The Pies' last game before the bye saw five key players (Dan Houston, Dan McStay, Darcy Moore, Jack Crisp and Jeremy Howe) spend 100 per cent of time on the ground in the final term, while key midfielders Jordan De Goey and Nick Daicos both spent 87 per cent of time on ground in their thrilling one-goal win.
As Carlton looks to avoid 0-4 start to the season, McCarthy is concerned consecutive losses in such a manner will take a mental toll on the playing group.
"When you start to lose close game after close game, you actually start to lose belief in the fact that if a team starts to come at you, that you've actually got enough to overrun them," McCarthy said.
"And the last three weeks have kind of shown that. They've conceded so many goals, have only scored three themselves, and [there's] been a real question mark around that."
