Updated ,first published
In today’s AFL Briefing:
- Carlton coach Josh Fraser on how the young Blues will fare in the cauldron of finals pressure.
- St Kilda make three changes to their list.
- The Bulldogs are bemused over the league’s decision to grant the Magpies use of Marvel Stadium for training.
‘If you didn’t laugh, you’d cry’: Beveridge on the Pies’ Marvel Stadium run
Andrew Wu
The Western Bulldogs are bemused over the league’s decision to grant the Magpies use of Marvel Stadium for training ahead of their wildcard final at the MCG on Friday night.
Though a Marvel Stadium tenant, the Dogs have not been granted access to use the venue for a main training session this season, so the turf can be managed. With the home-and-away season over, that is now less of a factor.
The Pies have been forced to train away from their Olympic Park base at stages this season due to the impact of wet weather on the playing surface.
“If you didn’t laugh, you’d cry,” Bulldogs coach Luke Beveridge said.
“It’s a cracker, really.
“None of the tenant clubs can get on it. I think we’ve been offered a captain’s run in runners at some point. We’re not driving now to do that. So when we heard about it, I almost fell off my chair because it’s hilarious.”
The never-say-die Dogs are channelling their reputation as the league’s cliffhanger kings in their quest for a first finals victory in five years.
The club that turned their Tooth ‘n’ Nail slogan into a song at the start of the season has lived up to that mantra in a turbulent campaign where they have been written off numerous times.
The Dogs’ first roadblock came in April. Amid a horror six-game stretch where they won only once, the club lost spearhead Sam Darcy to a season-ending knee injury, ruckman Tim English and Aaron Naughton, the latter to a neck injury in a frightening fall.
Then came the deflating defeat to North Melbourne only three weeks ago after which skipper Marcus Bontempelli was belatedly rested. Against the odds, the Dogs drew with form team Carlton and Melbourne at their MCG fortress to claim eighth.
The Bulldogs’ opponents, the Magpies, have been the best at winning the close ones, but that mantle now belongs to Beveridge’s men, who have seven wins from their seven games decided by single-digit margin this year – plus a draw.
“[There’s] the storyline and the journey and the authenticity of us, the inspirational aspects of our journey and the close games we won, and now we get a chance to work out whether we can double down on that,” Beveridge said.
“Now we can bring that to life a bit, so that’s exciting.
“It’s always disappointing for the coach if you don’t make the finals, essentially just for the sole reason that’s your endeavour to finish as high as you can. But what it also does, it circumvents your opportunity to grow that experience and the relationship piece together.
“We definitely go into this game really connected, and a feeling like we’ve earned it, and that’ll really count for something.”
Hit by injuries at key points of the season, the Dogs have a relatively clean bill of health for the first final. Veteran Tom Liberatore is missing, but Beverdige expects Naughton and English to be fit to face the Pies.
The return of Connor Budarick and Bailey Dale have stiffened their defence. Dale, in particular, was important in their win over the Demons.
The late-season resurgence of young gun Joel Freijah, dubbed “Baby Bont”, has also energised their midfield.
The vagaries of the league’s finals fixture have not been kind to the Dogs.
Despite being the higher-ranked club, they face Collingwood at the Pies’ home ground off a six-day break.
How Fraser’s Blues will handle the finals
Roy Ward
If you want something encapsulating how Carlton coach Josh Fraser has calmed the storm around his young Blues, his thoughts ahead of Saturday night’s wildcard final against Melbourne tell the story.
The Blues have gone from a 1-8 start under previous coach Michael Voss to win 10 of their last 13 games, along with a draw, under the newly appointed Fraser, and they will take to the MCG with the belief that they can beat the Demons in front of a bumper MCG crowd.
As he calmly spoke to the media on Thursday morning before training, dressed in shorts and a jacket with his now trademark hood, Fraser was asked how his young guns like Jagga Smith, Harry Dean, Talor Byrne and Billy Wilson will handle the pressure moments inside the MCG cauldron.
“They’ll be fine. They’ll be completely fine,” Fraser said without skipping beat.
“We have some good young kids with calm heads on their shoulders, and they are well-supported by experienced players. And this is a space we’ve grown in over the last four to eight weeks.
“We will stay well-connected and no one’s felt like they’re alone out there. I expect that to be the same.”
There is something telling in Fraser recognising the possibility that his players could feel isolated on a ground that’s surrounded by more than 90,000 fans – most of them likely Blues diehards.
He sees an upward trend in what the Blues are getting from their least-experienced players and what they could do in finals.
“There are those guys who’ve had Rising Star nominations, but there’s a lot of others that we’re really excited about. Jack Ison has played some football this year that I’m excited for,” Fraser said.
“Jagga has had a really consistent season, you see what you see on the weekend, but he’s a terrific young man and he’s going to be a great leader for this football club.
“Harry Dean has already attached himself to our supporters with the way he plays, he’s become a bit of a cult hero and we love having him at the club.”
Smith sounded the furthest thing from nervous when he spoke on Thursday following his Rising Star win on Monday night. Dean was runner-up, and named the AFL Players’ Association’s best first-year player.
Smith’s stellar season comes after he missed all of last year due to a knee reconstruction.
“We’re so focused on Saturday against Melbourne, I feel that if you are looking too far ahead, then you’ve not focusing on the right things,” Smith said.
“I just can’t wait for Saturday to play in my first finals match, it’s so exciting.”
Blues skipper Patrick Cripps has already worded up his fellow midfielder ahead of the Demons clash.
“Crippa has told me that the level steps up a bit, so I look forward to testing myself out there,” Smith said.
On the injury front, the Blues had forward Will Hayward and defender Nick Haynes test out their injured ankles during their main session on Thursday with Hayward completing some run-throughs before training and exchanging high-fives with teammates.
But Fraser will only select them if they can stand up to a full match.
“There is fit to play and there is fit to perform, and they need to be fit to perform,” Fraser said.
“The load and toll that it puts on the rest of the group if they are not able to get through is too great, particularly with the way the game is played at the moment.”
Much has been made about the impact of Fraser and fellow former ruckman turned Melbourne coach Steven King have had on their sides this season. Fraser admits he has watched King’s work with pride.
“I’ve really enjoyed watching Kingy’s journey this year,” Fraser said.
“We are both Goulburn Valley boys; he’s from Shepparton and I’m from Mansfield. I guess I followed his pathway into the AFL having the career he had and then move into coaching. He’s a great fella and I wish him all the best, just not as much this weekend.“
– Roy Ward
Former No.3 draft pick among St Kilda departures
Roy Ward
Former Carlton No.3 pick Paddy Dow is among three St Kilda players who won’t return to the Saints in 2027.
The club announced on Thursday that Dow, Isaac Keeler and Patrick Said would not be offered contracts for next season.
Dow, the No.3 pick in the 2017 national draft, played 73 games for the Blues between 2018 and 2023 before he was shipped to St Kilda as part of a four-team trade.
Dow played 10 games for the Saints in 2024 before a serious staph injection plus knee and collarbone injuries limited his availability, although he averaged 26 disposals per game for the Saints at VFL level this season.
Keeler, a ruckman, was drafted by the Saints with pick 44 in the 2022 draft, and he played 13 games for the club with only two this season.
Said was drafted by the Saints with pick 60 in the 2024 draft and didn’t play a senior game for the club. But he kicked 20 goals in 25 games at VFL level for Sandringham and St Kilda in the past two seasons.
Those three players join the retiring Dougal Howard in departing the Saints.
Saints football general manager Lenny Hayes thanked them for their work.
“Isaac, Paddy and Patrick are popular members of our playing group, with each making a valued contribution to our football club,” Hayes said.
“The players, coaches and staff at the Saints will miss them, and we wish them and their families every success for the future.”
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