Carlton coach Michael Voss made his message clear on Wednesday - actions speak louder than words.
Voss also suggested Patrick Cripps' unusual ruck role would not be going anywhere anytime soon, to the dismay of many AFL opinionists.
In a lengthy press conference, Voss was bombarded with questions ranging from lessons about last Thursday's defeat, to the role of Patrick Cripps, and the boost of Charlie Curnow's inclusion.
However, Voss finished most responses by reiterating the same point.
"It doesn't matter what I say here today, it's what we do."
The Blues' shock defeat to Richmond last Thursday has been blasted by AFL pundits, consumers, and even by Carlton's own fans themselves.
Anticipated to burst out the blocks with a comprehensive win, the Blues choked a 41-point lead halfway through the second quarter, succumbing to Richmond's unwavering energy and pressure, who eventually clawed their way back to claim a 13-point win.
One day out from Carlton's second encounter of 2025, the reaction from Round 1's loss is still fierce.
Voss said that the players have "sat in the disappointment" this week and held "honest" conversations to acknowledge the concerning loss.
โWe had a few days to be able to sit in the disappointment of it. It gives you a bit of time to reflect on the way the game went, but also focus on what's real and separate what's not real," Voss said.
"There was a fair bit of honesty in it. When you address it, you move on to accept it and then act on the things that have been important to us over the pre-season that we weren't able to execute consistently over the night.
โYou don't have to tell them (the players) certain things. We have to be able to be big enough to accept that the standards weren't acceptable.
"We don't miss that, and we also don't miss the reinforcement or opportunity to look at what worked well - throughout the game, we put ourselves in a really strong position and defended exceptionally wellโฆ but that was for a half. We didn't finish the other half.
โThat's the facts, and we deal in the facts.โ
Voss has hinted that Cripps' unusual ruck role will appear again this season, despite the backlash from media commentators.
Doubling down bluntly, Voss defended the decision to rotate the dual Brownlow medallist through the tap contests.
โYou would've noticed he's played there a fair bit over the last couple of years, it's not unique, so I'd imagine he'll play there a little bit from time to time," Voss said.
"Well I would've thought so (that Cripps would play in the ruck despite his significant midfield role) because he won a Brownlow medal doing it, so, he goes alright.
"He loves it. it's something a bit different. You've seen across the competition that it's not unique to us. The fact that it's 'Crippa' might give it a bit more attention, but you'll notice a lot of second rucks have varying size about them."
Although, with Curnow's return imminent, Voss suggested that Cripps will take on his regular midfield duties against Hawthorn on Thursday.
โIt looks a bit different with Charlie playing," Voss said.
"We might change the strategy based on that because you have the extra tall ahead of the ball, so it does maybe change what you need from him.โ
Voss said that Curnow was gunning for a Round 1 inclusion, but conceded playing him would've been a touch too early, now holding surefire belief that Curnow is at 100 percent fitness.
โIt does help that he's got an extra week under his belt. He possibly could have last week, but I think it would've been pulling the trigger too early," Voss said.
"He's well and truly ready. Speaking to him yesterday, he's really clear and excited about getting back out there yesterday."
In the upcoming clash against Hawthorn, Voss admitted the Blues would "not win every" contest after seeing the Hawks' undefeated start to the season, but hammered home the theme of letting his players' actions do the talking this week.
โThey're in great form. You see the confidence that has built over time and been a pretty settled side, over the last couple of weeks their performances have been really strong," Voss said.
โIt didn't matter last week if people said we'd win or lose, it doesn't matter this week either. We've got an assignment to be able to get done, we've got the task ahead of us. We've got to lock in and get it done.
โYou've got to appreciate you're not going to win every duel. They've got good players behind the ball that can intercept, which fuels their game... But collectively, there's a response that's needed."
Carlton's chance to right their wrongs begins at 7:30pm on Thursday, with fixtures against the Bulldogs and Magpies to follow.
