\n For Jacob Weitering and the Blues, Saturday night’s introduction to wildcard sure feels like finals football.\n <\/p>\n
\n By Cristian Filippo, Carlton Media\n <\/p>\n
\u201cON THE night when you\u2019ve got 80-90,000 screaming Melbourne and Carlton fans, I think it\u2019s certainly going to feel like it.\u201d<\/p>\n
The more things change, the more they stay the same\u2026<\/p>\n
Carlton is preparing for its first MCG final since that famous night against Melbourne in 2023, with the 2026 instalment to be the first ever \u2018wildcard\u2019 weekend in the AFL.<\/p>\n
For Jacob Weitering and the Blues, it sure feels like a final, especially given the run the team has been on recently to keep their season alive.<\/p>\n
Weitering was there for that two-point win in 2023, but it\u2019s an otherwise vastly different Carlton outfit which took to the field. Come Saturday night, the Blues could have more than a dozen different faces than that game just three years ago.<\/p>\n
What has presented in recent weeks has been the opportunity for this Carlton team to experience finals football as a new group – something that seemed inconceivable just a few months ago.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor us, we\u2019ve approached every game since the bye as a final, and I think we\u2019ve played like it,\u201d Weitering told SEN on Tuesday morning.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe put ourselves in a pretty ugly position, so there\u2019s a fair amount of gratitude and perspective that has gone into the last two or three days.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re proud of the fact we\u2019ve put ourselves in this position, and hopefully we can do some damage heading into September.\u201d<\/p>\n
Weitering spoke on the impact of Josh Fraser, the AFL Senior Coach who has helped oversee a stunning rise into finals contention.<\/p>\n
Peeling back the curtain, Weitering shared what the Blues have been valuing in recent weeks, highlighting a first-year player who has lived that very ethos each and every week.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re certainly enjoying our football and we\u2019re incredibly connected at the moment,\u201d Weitering said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s the little things: picking a teammate up, celebrating not just after goals but an amazing pressure effort. It\u2019s been a great environment to be part of, and whole Club effort from the top down – the staff have been unbelievable in backing us in.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019ve seen the way Talor Byrne has gone about his football this year: there\u2019s been a couple of games where he\u2019s got on the end of a few goals, but if he has six disposals, six tackles and six pressures, that\u2019s his game. There have been a few moments in the last couple of weeks where without that, I don\u2019t think we turn the tide of the game.\u201d<\/p>\n
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