News Andrew Russell to step away at season’s end

[Aphrodite]

Russell to step away at season’s end

Andrew Russell will step away from football at the conclusion of the 2024 AFL season.

www.carltonfc.com.au

THE Carlton Football Club can confirm that after 26 years within the AFL industry, Director of High Performance Andrew Russell will step away from football at the conclusion of the 2024 AFL season.

Following six seasons at the Blues, in which time he led high performance, Russell will conclude his time at the Club, with his current contract set to expire at season’s end.

 

[JustOneTime]

Russell must be curled up in a ball right now. Hope there isn't another hammy injury this weekend. Can only imagine that scene in Flying High where everyone is queuing up with baseball bats to put that hyperventilating passenger out of their misery.

Everyone needs to chill. Having said that, I ordered my crossbow two weeks ago!

 

[Jimmyonesix]

Waiting his turn to walk the green mile. Very hard for him now but I have a feeling the club will back him till the end and part ways. Nothing would happen mid season unless the leadership group itself and main coaches had lost total confidence in him. which would be unlikely.

 

[Accidental genius]

I’m not defending Russell but I do wonder how much of the injuries are caused by a lack of poor preparation/care by the injury prones outside of club directed training.

Just thinking about simmo and how resilient he was - recall he talking about the extra work he would do away from normal training.

 

[gab213]

I’m not defending Russell but I do wonder how much of the injuries are caused by a lack of poor preparation/care by the injury prones outside of club directed training.

Just thinking about simmo and how resilient he was - recall he talking about the extra work he would do away from normal training.

I have always been more inclined to question the recruitment of players who were already known to be injury prone. We recruited a number of them, not just one or two. I also would question persisting with players who just can't stay on the park for up to a decade.

 

[Accidental genius]

I have always been more inclined to question the recruitment of players who were already known to be injury prone. We recruited a number of them, not just one or two. I also would question persisting with players who just can't stay on the park for up to a decade.

I agree with that.

SOS loved getting bargain basements.

It was one of the things that frustrated me when he’d bring in injured players on the cheap - and imo he believed/hoped Russell would wave his magic and get them right.

 

[GoBlues!]

I’d be surprised and disappointed if the club isn’t doing something behind the scenes like getting independent advice and a review of our training, fitness and conditioning practices.

Someone like Neil Craig would be ideal.

 

[CarmenSandiego]

I have always been more inclined to question the recruitment of players who were already known to be injury prone. We recruited a number of them, not just one or two. I also would question persisting with players who just can't stay on the park for up to a decade.

They still complete medicals with the HP team & doctors. They must be pretty average medicals.

"can you stand up straight?"
"yeah kinda"
"woah, that's impressive - sign him up boys!!"

 

[marcmurphy3]

They still complete medicals with the HP team & doctors. They must be pretty average medicals.

"can you stand up straight?"
"yeah kinda"
"woah, that's impressive - sign him up boys!!"

100%. It's naive to think High Performance don't have strong input into the signing and retention of these injury prone players.

You think if Russell says " You can re-sign Marchbank and Cunners but they will probably spend half of next year on the injury list" that we re-sign them? I think not.

Though if he is saying that and we are re-signing them anyway or if HP isn't being asked at all we have a different problem.

 

[marcmurphy3]

Waiting his turn to walk the green mile. Very hard for him now but I have a feeling the club will back him till the end and part ways. Nothing would happen mid season unless the leadership group itself and main coaches had lost total confidence in him. which would be unlikely.

For sure. Could definately see that happening.

I don't think it's about Russell being bad and everything being his fault so we don't need to treat it as such.

It's more that it's just not working out and time we tried something different.

 

[Blue since 72]

I have always been more inclined to question the recruitment of players who were already known to be injury prone. We recruited a number of them, not just one or two. I also would question persisting with players who just can't stay on the park for up to a decade.

This is my view as well.

I can see the attraction of keeping players to see if they come good, especially when the talent is evident and it's a people business so not the easiest thing to let them go but objectively we have held onto some for too long and decisions need to be made sooner than later on some players.

 

[DangerousD]

I have always been more inclined to question the recruitment of players who were already known to be injury prone. We recruited a number of them, not just one or two. I also would question persisting with players who just can't stay on the park for up to a decade.

This doesnt get enough air time, SOS recruited who he id and now he is gone, Austin needs to take responsibility for the players he has kept and the ones he has brought in.

 

[jj1978]

Regardless of how good Russell is, the optics have now hit a point where the club will be aware changes will need to be done as it's damaging the brand if the status quo continues into 25.

 

[LemmingMaster]

Interesting to see the damage to the brand.

I much prefer to know if it is actually a Russell issue or not, because if it is not, then shuffling the deck chairs will solve nothing but "optics"

 

[BlueJet]

If they get things right, be that with or without Russell - the noise will quieten.

 

[Arr0w]

If they get things right, be that with or without Russell - the noise will quieten.

Agreed, both sides of the debate

Unfortunately, some will still be rusted on to their thoughts no matter what

 

[jj1978]

Interesting to see the damage to the brand.

I much prefer to know if it is actually a Russell issue or not, because if it is not, then shuffling the deck chairs will solve nothing but "optics"

Of course it damages the brand of not only the club but also Russell himself, I'm sure his thrilled that the past month has seen the media start to amp their questioning over our injury management and conditioning and continued injuries over the last few years.

If injuries mount impacting our ability to win, the club brand will get damaged, as losses (leading to non finals or less success) tend to equate to membership drop off, less favourable game scheduling, get players and free agents interested in getting brought in (particularly those managing niggles and such).

The club and the AFL is a business everything is about optics.

 

[TheBlueCampaigner]

They still complete medicals with the HP team & doctors. They must be pretty average medicals.

"can you stand up straight?"
"yeah kinda"
"woah, that's impressive - sign him up boys!!"

Found a picture on the CFC website of the doctor that does our medical checks on traded players.

 

[Aphrodite]

Blues not pointing finger at fitness boss; Lyon lauds Indigenous ‘fight’

Michael Voss says injury-ravaged Carlton will solve their woes together, as a spate of soft-tissue injuries jeopardise their flag tilt, while St Kilda coach Ross Lyon wants Sir Doug Nicholls round to celebrate both the “fight” and the achievements of Indigenous players.

www.theage.com.au

Injury-ravaged Carlton are not pointing the finger at fitness boss Andrew Russell, with coach Michael Voss saying the Blues will solve their woes together, as a spate of soft-tissue injuries jeopardise the Blues’ best tilt at a premiership since the turn of the century.

The Blues are searching for answers after a week in which the number in their casualty ward ballooned out to 14 players, including up to 10 who would be in their best 23.

 

[Blue1980]

Rightly or wrongly, there will be some taking the fall for our bad injury run. Players and staff.
Going to be an interesting offseason - there's enough evidence available that even a premiership will not cover up the need for change.

It’s been a problem every single season since Russell has been in charge.

2022 we died 2nd half of the year, so decided to be more cautious in 2023 and went too far the other way and looked sluggish and awful for half a season.

Now 2024 we have gone the other extreme to 2023 and everyone is getting injured though so far we have been playing better (but still not great and in fits and starts).

To me there isn’t much evidence we have the best in the business with Russell. He may of been a gun previously, but times change and it’s more a faith based system at this stage to still think he is some sort of guru.

I do think we have some super injury prone players which doesn’t help as well, but not the whole list. Also Jack Martin was playing like 85% of games at Gold Coast, so what’s happened now? How much footy did Cerra miss at Freo?

 

[Blue1980]

Pies game relies on manic pressure more than ours tbf.

But if they also went the same route, they backed themselves to drop some early games and make up for it later - fair enough, they're the reigning Premiers.

Were we good enough to flirt like that?

Well we seemed to go down that track last year but went to an extreme I think and we also lost from and confidence to go with that.

So seems they have overcompensated for that, after they overcompensated for what happened at the end of 2022 in 2023.

 

[Blue1980]

Unfortunately I agree with you. I was thinking worst case scenario we do a bit of a review thingy (PR nonsense) at the end of the year then "mutually agree to part ways". But ultimately the situation is getting worse by the week with ongoing mismanagement at the heart of it.

Fancy bringing 2 injury prone players (Cunners+Martin) back directly into the AFL team week #1 of their return. And then both of them break down within a week.

I mean what the hell is going on? Whoever is in charge get them out of their ASAP so they can cause no further damage.

The 2024 premiership tilt is slowly going up in flames.

I don’t think bringing Cuningham and Martin back to afl level mattered, these guys are so injury prone you may as well play them at the highest level before they inevitably break down again.

 

[Blue1980]

This is my view as well.

I can see the attraction of keeping players to see if they come good, especially when the talent is evident and it's a people business so not the easiest thing to let them go but objectively we have held onto some for too long and decisions need to be made sooner than later on some players.

Martin and Marchy are more tantalising as their best has been seen is very good.

Cuningham is just someone who does nice things now and again, and doing things nice now and again and being available 30% of the time isn’t really worth it.

 

[Blue1980]

I will add the worst case scenario from here is the injuries keep mounting and we lose form with lack of continuity and personnel and don’t make the 8.

No way Russell survives that and strength and conditioning dept at the club doesn’t get a big overhaul in that case.

 

[jpfalvo]

I agree with that.

SOS loved getting bargain basements.

It was one of the things that frustrated me when he’d bring in injured players on the cheap - and imo he believed/hoped Russell would wave his magic and get them right.

SoS long gone now. The re-signing of said players, and lack of list turnover particularly last year, to clear some of these types, compounds the issue.

For example, Cunningham has spent 10years on the list for very few games or which when he does play, inconsistent output.

All teams, go through this. Cutting their losses of "talented" high picks who cant get in the park... Collingwood had a litany of them a few years ago, eg. Freeman, Rusling etc.

To me list mgt has got to play a part. Professional sport is a ruthless business, and there is always hard luck stories

Sent from my SM-N981B using Tapatalk

 

[teddy-hopkins]

I don’t think bringing Cuningham and Martin back to afl level mattered, these guys are so injury prone you may as well play them at the highest level before they inevitably break down again.

So why was it a good idea last season but not this season? They didn't reinjure themselves last season.