THERE is no easy fix to improve Carlton's disastrous season, but coach Brendon Bolton believes the hard times "will pay the Blues back" after another heavy defeat on Friday night.
Carlton has now lost 15 of 16 games so far this year, suffering a demoralising 64-point loss to fellow strugglers St Kilda in a trying encounter at Etihad Stadium.
Comprehensively outplayed in a number of key areas, the Blues produced a series of disastrous turnovers in one of the side's most disappointing performances for the year.
BLUES' PAIN WORSENS Full match details and stats
Speaking after the game, Bolton suggested there was no way to immediately solve the club's issues, stressing that his young group will learn from the experience of this season.
"We'd love to just sprinkle fairy dust over it all," Bolton said.
"We know in this caper that it's not that. Our fundamental skill errors, we've got to continue to work at that and we'll train them really hard, but they hurt us tonight.
"The intent was to use and share the ball, but we probably took it a bit too far and we overdid it. Then on turnover it got us.
"We'll just keep fighting in that space … fundamental skills, the pressure, that's aspirational."
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Bolton continued to take a long-term view in regard to his team's development, saying he is having no issue in maintaining both morale and confidence within his group.
Instead, the Blues coach reiterated his belief that his team's mental and physical toughness will grow as a result of such a difficult campaign.
"These times will pay us back, they have to," Bolton said.
WATCH Brendon Bolton's full post-match media conference
"As hard as they are while we're living them, they've got to build resilience.
"How to work when you've got limited rotations, playing multiple and different positions … they're the key take-aways.
"They should also take away that we're not satisfied and we're not at all happy in terms of the result. We'll keep chasing a win, they need to know that."
