Success is long-term ambition

THE AFL wooden spoon has edged closer to Carlton but Blues coach Brendon Bolton says he is unconcerned by it.

The Blues were worked over by Geelong at Etihad Stadium, losing by 65 points.

Earlier on Saturday, North Melbourne conjured an against-the-odds win over Melbourne in Hobart that saw the Blues drop to 17th.

Bolton’s side has lost six in a row and sits one win and 7 per cent above last-placed Brisbane Lions.

While it is hard to see where Carlton’s next win comes from, two home games for the Lions against the Kangaroos (16th) and Gold Coast (15th) suggest Chris Fagan’s side could yet avoid finishing last.

The Blues face Essendon and Hawthorn in Melbourne and West Coast and Sydney on the road in a taxing end to the campaign. Even finishing second-bottom would be a major step backwards given last year’s 14th-place finish.

Bolton insists he is not worried.

“I don’t look for the spoon or give that a consideration,” he said. “All we do is go and look for what we lessons we can learn from games . . . (learning) is really important with a young group.”

The second-year coach pointed to Sam PetrevskiSeton’s 20-possession game in midfield and Levi Casboult’s three goals as positives. He urged Carlton fans to stay the course with the club, which has signalled its intention to rebuild from the ground up.

“We called it a journey for a reason,” he said.

“What (fans) are getting to see is a young group get exposure, and given our exposure they’re getting a lot of exposure in positions and that’s good for us.” AAP