Blues keen to bring home Boak

Updated May 31, 2012 12:12:16

Carlton coach Brett Ratten says the Blues are very keen to talk to Travis Boak if the star midfielder indicates he wants to leave Port Adelaide.

Boak, from the Victorian costal town of Torquay, will play his 100th game on Saturday night at Football Park when 15th-placed Port host Ratten's Blues.

While Ratten continues to juggle a large injury list, including the absence for a third successive week of key forward Jarrad Waite, the Blues coach is also keeping an eye on plans for 2013.

Boak, 23, was equal-first in Port's best and fairest last year and is weighing up a possible return to Victoria.

"He's a very good player, Travis," Ratten told reporters on Wednesday.

"If he was prepared to come home, we'd be very interested to have a chat with his management.

"That's something that (Carlton's football operations manager) Andrew McKay will chase behind the scenes.

"We'll earmark some players and pursue them if they're keen to come home or change state.

"We could go close, depending on what type of figure we're talking. I think we'll have some (salary-cap) room to manoeuvre there if someone popped up."

While Boak would add to Carlton's star-studded midfield, Ratten says he is pleased with the efforts of Aaron Joseph, Brock McLean and two-game teenager Josh Bootsma in the absence of players such as defender Jeremy Laidler and midfielders Marc Murphy and Andrew Carrazzo.

Ratten said Lachie Henderson (hip tightness) was unlikely to return this week, while fellow defender Chris Yarran (toe) would be fit to play for the sixth-placed Blues.

Nick Duigan (calf) will miss another week while Andrew Collins (jarred knee) will face a fitness test.

Waite, who was rested from the round-six clash with Greater Western Sydney with a hip complaint, played the following week against St Kilda but has since been troubled by a back injury.

"It's becoming serious because of the length of time that he's out for," Ratten said.

It has been a frustrating time for Waite, who had hip surgery last year and played only 12 games.

"We gave him an opportunity to freshen up (in round six) so he could get through and maintain a full season of football and now he's had this interruption as well," Ratten said.

"Hopefully he gets up for the Cats (on June 8).

"We don't know when he's going to be right. We're really mindful of getting him back.

"When you're trying to get to the pointy end of the season, getting your best players and your talent out on the field is so critical."

AAP

Tags: australian-football-league, sport, carlton-3053, vic, port-adelaide-5015, sa, australia

First posted May 30, 2012 22:02:56

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Blues forced to bring back Kreuzer

Updated May 04, 2012 20:09:32

Carlton ruckman Robbie Warnock has injured his hamstring, prompting the Blues to backflip on their decision to rest Matthew Kreuzer for Sunday's clash with GWS.

Kreuzer was initially listed as having a knee injury, though it was widely considered he was being spelled for a match the Blues are unbackable favourites to win.

But Warnock, who was named in the starting side for his first AFL game of the season, was ruled out on Friday.

Carlton confirmed he had damaged his hamstring at training on Thursday and pulled up sore.

Kreuzer and Shaun Hampson have proved a formidable combination in the ruck and forward line this season to keep Warnock out of the side.

Forward Andy Collins was also a late withdrawal from the squad after he also injured a hamstring at training.

The Blues are resting skipper Chris Judd and forward Jarrad Waite, who have officially been listed as omitted due to soreness and a hip injury respectively.

Defender Paul Bower and utility David Ellard are their replacements for the Docklands clash.

The Giants, whose coach Kevin Sheedy had warned Carlton of the perils of resting players against his side, have made more changes than the Blues.

Former Carlton forward Setanta o'hAilpin is among seven changes to the GWS line-up to take on his old club, while impressive young forward Jeremy Cameron (calf) drops out.

The Giants' rugby league convert Israel Folau will also miss the game because of a virus, which kept him out of training this week.

In other Sunday team news, North Melbourne has resisted the temptation to bring back ruckman Todd Goldstein to combat West Coast's Dean Cox and Nic Naitanui tandem in Perth.

Goldstein has been listed as an emergency.

Defender Cameron Pedersen comes in for Levi Greenwood in the Kangaroos' only change.

Port Adelaide has dropped Danyle Pearce for Sunday's game against Richmond at Football Park.

Pearce, replaced by Tom Logan, joins injured pair Jay Schulz and Chad Wingard to be left out.

AAP

Tags: australian-football-league, sport, carlton-3053, vic, australia, blacktown-2148, nsw

First posted May 04, 2012 16:57:49

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Hird set to bring in fresh legs

Posted June 13, 2011 22:06:00

Essendon coach James Hird is set to make at least four changes for Saturday's crunch clash with North Melbourne in a bid to revitalise his side's waning season.

The Bombers started the year in scintillating fashion, but had lost their past three matches to slump to eighth on the table.

Their initial plans for this week were scuppered on Sunday night, when their flight from Perth to Melbourne was cancelled due to volcanic ash from the Chilean volcano, forcing the squad to spend an extra night in Western Australia.

They eventually secured a flight out of Perth at 5.05pm (WST) on Monday.

Hird was disappointed with his side's work ethic in their 34-point loss to Fremantle on Sunday, and said ruckman Tom Bellchambers, Heath Hocking, Brent Stanton and Sam Lonergan were near certainties to return against the Kangaroos.

"There's four guys that haven't played this weekend, and I think it's important with the shorter week and the break that we bring some fresh players in as well," Hird said on Monday in Perth.

"It hasn't been good (the past month).

"We'd hope to see a fair bit of improvement on Saturday against North Melbourne."

Hird believed the unusual preparation this week could spark his team back into form.

"We would have loved to have gone home last night, but it hasn't been the worst thing for us," Hird said.

"We got to spend some time together as a group, done a good recovery session and we'll go home in a couple of hours. So it's turned out OK.

"We probably needed to do something a little bit different after three losses in a row.

"It was forced upon us and it's been quite a good result for us.

"We had recovery this morning and then we talked about the game for 45 minutes and then they were able to have free time.

"We love Perth. It's a great city."

Defender Dustin Fletcher, who was subbed off at half-time against the Dockers due to a corked quad, was expected to be ready to go against North Melbourne.

"It looks to be fine. He was out jogging this morning. It's bled a little bit, but we're very confident he'll play," he said.

Hird said it was not time to panic despite recent losses to Richmond, Melbourne and Fremantle.

"I think we've spoken to our fans a lot this year about the improvement we need to become a good side," Hird said.

"That doesn't happen in three months, four months.

"The period we're going through at the moment will be a really good learning curve for our players.

"We'd love to have won the last three games but we haven't, and I think our players have learnt a fair bit about the hardships of AFL football."

-AAP

Tags: sport, australian-football-league, australia, vic, essendon-3040

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Blues bring back Curnow for Power

Posted June 3, 2011 18:34:00

Carlton has recalled onballer Ed Curnow and handed Irishman Zac Tuohy his debut for Sunday's match against Port Adelaide.

Curnow had impressed Blues coach Brett Ratten in his debut season, playing every match before injuring his shoulder in round seven against St Kilda.

However, the Modewarre product had proved his fitness for the clash at Football Park.

Curnow had been named as rover while Tuohy, also 21, would start in the back pocket.

The fourth-placed Blues dropped ex-Melbourne midfielder Brock McLean and Jeremy Laidler is out with a knee injury.

Carlton decided to give Ryan Houlihan - who was named in a seven-man interchange bench on Thursday - a fourth game in the VFL following a calf injury.

Port, 16th, included Jacob Surjan at the expense of Cameron Hitchcock.

Third-placed Hawthorn made two changes for Sunday's game against eighth-placed Fremantle at the MCG.

Clinton Young and Kyle Cheney replaced injured duo Chance Bateman (ankle) and Shane Savage (calf).

The Dockers included Clancee Pearce and Zac Clarke for Jay van Berlo and Dylan Roberton who had been omitted.

Adelaide made four changes for Sunday's game at Docklands against North Melbourne.

The Crows recalled Brad Symes, Bernie Vince, Jack Gunston and ruckman Brad Moran for Myke Cook, Shaun McKernan and injured pair Taylor Walker (knee) and Brodie Smith (hip).

North named Kieran Harper and Cameron Pedersen to replace defenders Michael Firrito (suspended) and Daniel Pratt (finger injury).

- AAP

Tags: sport, australian-football-league, australia, sa, port-adelaide-5015, vic, carlton-3053

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