Carlton coach Michael Voss expects Charlie Curnow and Jacob Weitering to play against the Western Bulldogs despite both players being sore after the upset loss to GWS.
Defender Mitch McGovern is out for up to two weeks with a hip flexor injury, but Curnow and Weitering are set to play at Marvel Stadium on Saturday.
Curnow, a dual Coleman medallist, managed only one goal against the Giants, and Weitering was limited by a corked thigh early in the match.
“(Curnow) was certainly impacted last week, there’s no doubt about that,” Voss said on Friday. “But he’s been able to train so he’s right to go. A bit unfortunate with a couple of knocks last week early in the game with a couple of our boys, but they seem to have pulled up OK. Early in the week we weren’t 100 per cent sure but they were able to train (Thursday) and got through the training session so we expect them to play.”
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Bulldogs coach Luke Beveridge remains skeptical, suggesting Carlton might make a late change while indicating his own team likely won’t, despite concerns over his back-line.
Ruck-forward Rory Lobb is again named in defense alongside inexperienced Buku Khamis, with Alex Keath among the emergencies on his return from injury.
The Bulldogs’ defenders have taken cues from GWS back-man Jack Buckley’s handling of Curnow and will seek to contain Blues talls Harry McKay and Tom De Koning. Beveridge noted, “The way they’ve picked their emergencies with a midfielder and two small forwards, we sort of anticipate that maybe one of their bigs is coming out – otherwise they are quite tall in their front end. It will definitely be what’s happening from the 12 to 14 (players) up the field that are going to help our key defenders on those big boys. That’s priority No.1 for us – to make sure that our team defensive system works better than it has done last week.”
Carlton captain Patrick Cripps will play his 200th game, with Voss not ruling out a head-to-head matchup against Marcus Bontempelli. “It’d be a great match-up, wouldn’t it,” Voss said. “The ‘Bont’ is a critically important player and he’s one of those players we do admire from a distance. It’s going to be a big job for our midfield and they obviously have a number of other players in there (such as Adam Treloar and Tom Liberatore) that can have an influence as well.”
The Bulldogs have lost spearhead Aaron Naughton (concussion) but regain small forward Cody Weightman after a week out with groin soreness.
This contest is crucial in shaping the top eight, with the Dogs (8-8) still in the hunt and the Blues (11-5) seeking to secure a finals double chance.
