Michael Voss admits Carlton players are ‘devastated’ after missing out on finals spot again
Michael Voss admitted Carlton players were ‘devastated’ after missing out on a finals spot in heartbreaking fashion following an epic clash against Collingwood at a packed MCG on Sunday.
The Blues lost 11.9 (75) to 10.14 (74) to their arch-rivals in front of 88,287 fans – the biggest AFL crowd since the 2019 grand final – and will have to wait at least another 12 months to play finals footy for the first time since 2013.
Carlton looked well poised to break their September hoodoo as they overturned a 19-point deficit to lead by 24 at the final change.
Carlton coach Michael Voss conceded his players were devastated after missing out on finals footy following a dramatic 11.9 (75) to 10.14 (74) loss to Collingwood
The Blues, however, froze on the big stage and squandered their lead, kicking 0.6 to the Magpies’ 5.1 in the last quarter as Jamie Elliott booted the match-winner with just under two minutes left to play.
The goal sealed a top-four place for Collingwood and a finals spot for the Western Bulldogs, while Carlton missed out on the finals by 0.6 percentage points.
Voss conceded it will take his players time to get over the heartbreak.
‘They’re devastated,’ he said.
Carlton came within a point of making the finals for the first time since the 2013 season
‘We didn’t want this season to end, we feel like we had more in us and clearly when we were in the position we were, we wanted to play finals footy.
‘When it came down to those key moments, we couldn’t get it done, and it’s going to hurt for a bit.’
In his first season as Carlton coach, Voss looked set to end the wait for finals footy after the Blues started 8-2. The team lost momentum in the final stretch, losing to Adelaide and Brisbane before suffering a last-gasp defeat to reigning premiers Melbourne last week.
Former Collingwood coach Nathan Buckley said Carlton only had themselves to blame for missing out on the finals, but suggested Voss’ first season in charge had shown plenty to feel positive about in the near future.
Jamie Elliott (left) kicked the winning goal as the Pies completed a remarkable comeback
Collingwood clinched a top-four spot and will play Geelong in the first qualifying final
‘They gave up eight points that they’d earned for 95 per cent of the last two games and then just weren’t able to get over the line,’ he told Fox Footy.
‘There’s a lot of “what ifs” in Carlton’s season and it’s going to feel really wasted for them now.
‘But they’ve definitely taken great strides this year. This is not the time because Carlton fans aren’t going to feel that, but they’re definitely coming.’
Voss vowed Carlton will come back stronger next year and insisted his team were on the up
Former Collingwood coach Nathan Buckley believes there were positives to take from this season for Carlton and that they will rebound next year
Fellow Fox Footy analyst Nick Riewoldt struck a similar tone, pointing the finger at the Blues.
‘That was a butchering of the highest order,’ he said.
‘Two weeks in a row they [Carlton] have slaughtered it [their chances of making the finals.’
