Carlton Football Club
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The Carlton Football Club , also Carlton Blues , is an Australian football club from Melbourne , which plays in the Australian Football League and was one of the eight founding members of the league in 1897. Originally Carlton represented the district of the same name in the center of Melbourne. With 16 championships, the Blues are the most successful team in the AFL alongside the Essendon Bombers . The club colors are navy blue and white. The venues are currently the Etihad Stadium and the Melbourne Cricket Ground , former home is Princes Park (until 2005).
history
The Carlton Football Club was founded in July 1864 and enjoyed a large audience in the region, which quickly made it rival of the Melbourne Demons . After successful early years, performance stagnated in the 1890s. Nevertheless, the club was invited to participate in the inaugural season of the Victorian Football League . The first year ended the Blues in seventh and penultimate place in the table with two wins and twelve defeats. In 1903 the first place in the Finals series was achieved , which is mainly due to the commitment of Jack Worrall as the person responsible for the team's sporting interests. Under Worrall, Carlton was able to win the championship in 1906, 1907 and 1908 and the season balance of 19 wins and only one defeat in 1908 lasted for over 90 years.
The following years were marked by various conflicts off the field. Many Blues players rebelled against Worrall because of poor pay and harsh training methods. After the 1909 season, Worrall left Carlton and many players who had remained loyal to Worrall moved to other clubs. In addition, two players were sentenced to 99 games each because of match-fixing, a penalty that has not been matched to this day. Nevertheless, Carlton reached the Grand Final in 1909 and 1910, but lost both games. In 1914 and 1915 further championships followed, rather the First World War significantly disrupted league operations. In some cases, only four teams were active, as a majority of the players had to serve in the Australian armed forces .
Between the world wars, the Blues reached 14 Finals series , but could only reach the Grand Final three times and were untitled for 23 years until 1938, which was the longest dry spell in the club's history. Finally, in 1938, the sixth title was won.
The next title followed in 1945, a month after the end of World War II . The VFL had maintained their league operations during the war. Carlton reached the Grand Final and played in the so-called Bloodbath against South Melbourne FC . The match in front of 62,986 spectators was marked by bloody arguments on the field, between the supervisors and in the spectator stands and resulted in a victory for the Blues and numerous penalties for players and officials. Carlton managed to win another title in 1947, rather a long unsuccessful period without a championship dawned, which would last until 1964. The 1964 season marked the worst season in the club's history to date.
Change of personnel in the club management in 1965 initiated a change in the team. Between 1967 and 1988 the Blues missed the finals only three times , reached ten grand finals and won seven championships. First George Harris was installed as president, who in turn was able to commit Ron Barassi from local rivals Melbourne as coach. In 1968, 1969 and 1970 the Blues reached the Grand Final under Barassi and won two championships. The 1970 Grand Final is still one of the most famous finals in Australian football history. In front of 121,696 spectators, Carlton's rival Collingwood led with 44 points at halftime, but seven goals in 15 minutes ensured a comeback for the Blues and ultimately a win by ten points. After missing the finals in 1971, Barassi left Carlton, but succeeded in winning the title again in 1972.
The further 1970s were characterized by many personnel changes and mediocre performance. It was not until 1979 that they made it to the Grand Final , which the Blues won. More titles followed in 1981 and 1982, despite the ongoing unrest off the field. Winning the title in 1982 marked the 14th title in club history and made Carlton the most successful club in the VFL. Essendon previously held this title. Further championships followed in 1987 and 1995. The 1995 title win in the AFL, which was founded in 1990, is the last championship title of the Blues to date .
In the new millennium, Carlton could not build on bygone times and ran into financial problems that were reflected in the seasonal performance. In 2002 the Blues were bottom of the table and won the Wooden Spoon for the first time. It also became known that Carlton had systematically infiltrated the AFL's salary cap . As a penalty, you lost draft picks and had to pay a fine of almost one million AUD , which further exacerbated the sporting situation. As a result of the scandal, President John Elliot was forced to resign and was replaced by Ian Collins. Under him, the venue of the Blues was moved from Princes Park to Docklands Stadium (now Etihad Stadium ). Nevertheless, there was no sporting upswing and Carlton won two more Wooden Spoons as the worst team until 2007. The performance of the Blues improved from 2007 and in 2009, 2010 and 2011 the finals could be reached again, but no further titles were won. In 2015, after a weak season, the fourth wooden spoon "won" .
successes
- Championships (16): 1906, 1907, 1908, 1914, 1915, 1938, 1945, 1947, 1968, 1970, 1972, 1979, 1981, 1982, 1987, 1995
- McClelland Trophy (5): 1969, 1979, 1985, 1987, 1995