The training sessions that show the changes at Carlton under Josh Fraser

June 26, 2026 — 5:30pm

You have reached your maximum number of saved items.

Remove items from your saved list to add more.

At a training session just nine days into his reign at Carlton, Josh Fraser was unusually vocal for a head coach.

“Let’s get our feet set early,” Fraser ordered during a warm-up kicking drill in a piece of vision recorded by content creator Terry Dehghani’s Blue Abroad fan channel. “Don’t be lazy on these kicks.”

Such direction turned the heads of experienced onlookers, including Dehghani, who rarely misses an open training session.

“I don’t really recall too many times that we’ve heard the coach bark instructions that early in a training session,” Dehghani said in his report.

Advertisement

Months earlier, the Blues made headlines after an error-laden pre-season training session, recorded by another fan page – My Blue Heaven, run by Heath Buck – went viral, where players repeatedly missed simple kicks and without being pulled up by the coaches.

The contrast between the sessions could not have been more stark. They illustrate the change in the Blues, whose collapse and resurgence has been one of the most compelling storylines of the season.

Central to that is Fraser, the laid-back, hoodie-wearing interim coach praised by his players for his relaxed but clear and consistent approach, who refuses to throw his hat into the ring for the Blues’ top job despite building a record that would ordinarily have him as a clear favourite.

The Blues’ transformation under Fraser has been mind-boggling. Instead of conjuring ways to lose from what should be match-winning positions, the one-time bumbling Blues are winning again. The heaviness that weighed them down at the end of Michael Voss’ time has been replaced by harmonicas to introduce the team song.

Advertisement

The numbers

Though Blues players and officials are at pains to make the point progress was made under Voss, Fraser’s impact is undeniable.

He has done more than just make football fun again for his players. The former Collingwood ruckman, who has coached Gold Coast, the Magpies and the Northern Bullants at state league level, has fostered an environment for learning and kept things simple while also honing in on the fundamentals of the game.

Carlton’s strengths under Voss, contest and clearance, remain, but they are less reliant on these areas. Their contested possession rate is down from 37.3 per cent and sixth in Voss’s last five games to 32.8 per cent and 17th under Fraser. It’s a style more in keeping with how football is played in 2026.

Advertisement

They rank first for short kicks and uncontested marks, allowing them to play with more control. This allows them to better defend turnover. Less common under Fraser are the long kicks down the line.

The Blues’ scoring has risen only marginally, due in part to wastefulness in front of goal, but they are conceding less. Their scores and goals conceded from entries into their defensive 50 have improved, from 12th and 14th respectively to second and third, and overall scoring is down from an average of 101.3 points (15th) from opening round to round nine to 67.2 (second) in rounds 10-15.

In a further nod to Fraser, the Blues’ marked improvement in defence has come with their back line general Jacob Weitering playing just twice, evidence that it’s the system over talent that is shining through. Weitering, whose last game was four weeks ago against Geelong, will not be back for at least another three weeks after straining his calf again at training on Thursday.

A weight off the shoulders

Senior players Weitering, Sam Walsh and George Hewett have all pointed to a shift in mindset since Voss’ decision to give the club clear air by walking.

Advertisement

The Blues worked through the summer to modernise their game plan, away from the contest/clearance style that served them well in their charge to a preliminary final in 2023 but had become outdated.

The focus on the scoreboard during a period when there was so much attention on Voss’ future weighed heavily on players, a point their former coach acknowledged in an interview with 3AW this week.

When games tightened in the second half, and mistakes carried more consequence, the Blues retreated into their shells after mistakes and took the safe option of kicking long, fuelling opposition rebounds.

Two of the Blues’ most significant, and celebrated, plays under Fraser are the antithesis to this.

Advertisement

In the passage that set up Patrick Cripps’ match-winning mark and goal against Geelong, Hewett, streaming out of stoppage in the middle, spread a kick wide to Nic Newman instead of dumping the ball long inside 50 to the Cats’ extra man behind play.

Last week, the Blues chipped the ball up the wing to just outside the arc, where Mitch McGovern picked out Walsh in a pocket of space just inside 50 directly in front instead of bombing long. Walsh’s clutch shot ended a run of four goals by Greater Western Sydney, who had drawn level.

“I think at the start of the year, we were holding on too tight,” Walsh told 3AW after the game.

“When there’s moments, like there were at the third quarter, you’ve got an option to keep going at the game or go back into your shell. As leaders, we’ve tried to change that mindset and drive the game forward and keep attacking it.”

Advertisement

The Giants game was one the Blues would have lost two months ago. At three-quarter-time, Fraser flipped the Blues’ old mental demons into a positive.

“What he said is, we couldn’t have scripted this any better, this was a real challenge for us,” young gun Jagga Smith said this week.

“They had the momentum, and it was a really good test for us players to see if we could stop that momentum and get it going our way.

“There was a big moment before three-quarter-time with Sam Walsh kicking that goal, that helped, but I thought Josh’s messaging to the players was also amazing, about let’s really take this in our stride, and this can be a great learning in the last quarter.”

Advertisement

Fraser has also armed his players with strategies they can deploy when challenged. After regaining the ascendancy early in the last quarter, the Blues retained possession while still gaining ground.

“We’ve been better at going into solution-based footy,” Walsh said. “From there, we said there’s opportunities to own the ball, to shift angles. I think that composure really set us up late. It can be draining, as you know, for the other team if you keep shifting their defence and opening up their 50.”

Training standards

Several players have publicly spoken of Fraser’s focus on the fundamentals and the lifting of standards. His hands-on approach to training is an example of this.

Advertisement

“That’s my development background, I guess I like to be in amongst it as much as I can,” Fraser said.

“You get a sense for where the players are at and what they’re thinking and feeling, and I can’t speak highly enough of the group and the way they’ve attacked training and driven our training standards.”

Another improvement is in the Blues’ on-field communication, an area football boss Chris Davies identified as a factor in their fadeouts after the Good Friday defeat to North Melbourne. Track watchers have noted a lift in voice at training under Fraser. Recruits Will Hayward and Ben Ainsworth are louder players in what is seen as a naturally introverted group.

“I think it’s grown, and I think that’s something that we’ve been chasing for a little while,” Fraser said. “And we put some real energy into what that looks like, and how it comes out at game day, but just as importantly, how we train it so it comes out on game day.

“That’s some ownership from our leadership group, but not exclusive to them, I think every player has got a responsibility around that space, and it’s something we push pretty hard.”

Advertisement

Selection integrity/positional changes

Fraser has not been shy in making changes. Ainsworth, a specialist small forward at Gold Coast, has added speed with his use as an impact player in the midfield. Smith has improved since his return to the centre square. Hayward’s shift to the wing for periods has lifted his output and scoring.

Selection integrity are not mere buzzwords for Fraser. Veteran Blake Acres and newcomers Flynn Young, Jack Ison, Talor Byrne and Wade Derksen have all been rewarded for strong form in the VFL. Zac Williams and Ollie Hollands, mainstays under Voss, have made rare appearances in the lower level after coming back from injury. Cooper Lord has also been made to wait.

It also helps that Fraser’s leaders have led. Captain Cripps, reigning club champion Hewett and Coleman medallist Harry McKay have played their best footy this season under Fraser.

Advertisement

What do players think?

The rise under Fraser has put the Blues into finals calculations and given their interim coach a shot at the top job – if he wants it. Fraser remains adamant he is not ready. The message is the same behind closed doors.

“He’s literally saying the same thing to us,” ruckman Marc Pittonet told Triple M. “We finished the game on the weekend, and he goes ‘boys, you’re not the finished product, we need to get to work on Tuesday so come ready to train’.”

Players have toed the party line when asked about Fraser getting the gig permanently, lauding him without endorsing him for next year, but their praise goes well beyond the perfunctory. Common themes are his ability to build relationships, communication skills, a calm temperament and his tactical direction – all traits of top senior coaches.

Advertisement

“I like everything he’s done as a coach,” Pittonet said. “Everything he says externally, he’s been approaching internally. He sees the game really well and has strong consistent thoughts. I think he’s very good at what he does. That’s all I’d say.”

Keep up to date with the best AFL coverage in the country. Sign up for the Real Footy newsletter.

You have reached your maximum number of saved items.

Remove items from your saved list to add more.

More:

AFL 2026

For subscribers

Carlton Blues

Andrew Wu writes on cricket and AFL for The Age.Connect via X or email.

Click here to read article