Carlton have resisted the urge to make any bold selection calls following their horror round-one defeat to Richmond, axing just one player.
Former Geelong and Port Adelaide forward Francis Evans is the only casualty from last Thursday night, making way for the return of superstar forward Charlie Curnow.
After missing the end of last season due to an ankle injury, Curnow’s start to 2025 was hampered by knee issues.
But the dual Coleman medallist is raring to go for this Thursday night’s showdown with red-hot Hawthorn, who have surged into premiership favouritism on the back of last year’s run to the semi-final and an impressive first two games of 2025.
The Blues were left bitterly disappointed by blowing a 41-point lead against Richmond, who are tipped to claim back-to-back wooden spoons.
But coach Michael Voss is keeping things in perspective that it is only one game into a 24-round season.
Carlton were on the complete opposite end of the spectrum 12 months ago when they stunned eventual premiers Brisbane at the Gabba, coming back from 46 points down to win in Opening Round.
“We don’t separate, we don’t blame,” Voss said of the reaction to losing against the Tigers.
“We’re really confident in the body of work over the course of the pre-season.
“I couldn’t be more impressed with our prep: it seemed a bit unusual to me what turned up, that doesn’t mean it’s not addressed.
“We’re trying to find the version where we’re consistent no matter the circumstance.
“The information we’re getting back is we’re not that yet.
“We reinforce the things we want to play like, and sometimes in the instances where things don’t work well, you’ve got to double down on those things – you can’t just say ‘that didn’t work, there were a few errors, let’s go in a different direction’. That’s not strong leadership.
“That’s folding to a noise, if you want to call it that.”
Undefeated Hawthorn made two changes, replacing suspended defender Jack Scrimshaw with fellow backman Changkuoth Jiath.
Veteran triple premiership forward Jack Gunston has been recalled for his first game of the season, coming in for Sam Frost.
‘Special moment’: Boak reacts to breaking Port icon’s record
Travis Boak knows there is, and only can be, just one Russell Ebert at Port Adelaide.
Ebert isn’t the stuff of legends; he is the legend at the football club in working-class Alberton in western Adelaide.
A four-time Magarey medallist; six-time club champion; triple premiership player; captain; coach: Ebert was Port Adelaide in the 1970s and 1980s in the SANFL.
And his son Brett reckons the same could be said for Boak in Port’s AFL journey.
“You could get any supporter from any club walk past Trav and everyone has got the respect for him and loves him,” Ebert, a former teammate of Boak, told reporters on Wednesday.
“Some people dislike other players from other teams but I don’t think there is one person that doesn’t like Trav.
“And Dad was the same… they always loved Dad and respected him for what he did.”
Boak this weekend will play his 393rd game for Port – 373 AFL games, 20 official pre-season matches – and break Ebert’s record for most games for the club.
“This one is something I will look back on and be really proud of,” Boak told reporters.
“And it is a special moment mainly because of what Russell meant to this footy club, meant to me, meant to the playing group, meant to so many people in this community.
“I just see myself as a player that has been fortunate enough to represent the footy club and to be next to the names like Russell Ebert is pretty special.”
The on-field exploits of Ebert, who also played 25 VFL games for North Melbourne and 29 state matches, are SA football folklore.
But, post-playing, Ebert’s influence reached wider in the Port and SA community, becoming a tireless charity worker until his November 2021 death, aged 72.
Or as Boak described it: “Pretty much what I now call human being first, athlete second.”
It’s the motto of the 36-year-old Boak, who has embarked on a 19th season in the AFL and works with numerous charities including the Childhood Cancer Association.
“Everyone who represents this guernsey … has got that within them thanks to Russell Ebert,” Boak said.
“It’s about the legacy of being a good person and how we can impact our community.
“I certainly don’t consider myself up there with the names of Russell Ebert and the greats of this footy club.
“I just love playing footy and playing footy for this club and it’s a great honour to represent it.”
Brett Ebert, who played 166 games for the Power until retiring at the end of 2012, said his Dad would be thrilled that his record would be broken by the universally-admired Boak.
“I’d love for Dad to be here and talking about Trav and all he has done for the club,” Ebert said.
“Everyone knows what he does on the field and sees him as a player.
“But the stuff he does off the field is unbelievable and that is what I remember Dad as … all the good work he did off the field with the community and the charities and with the people less fortunate.
“I see all that in Trav … it’s what sets him apart. It’s more about the person he is, it’s what we should really celebrate.”
(with AAP)
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