Whipping boy now a true Blue

LEVI Casboult has always had a pair of hands like a heavy-duty steel vice. But for years, the Carlton key forward’s goalkicking left a lot to be desired.

“I used to look away when he was kicking for goal,” four-time Carlton premiership player Mark Maclure said. “I’m sure he did, too.”

The problems were there from the start for Tasmanian Casboult, who kicked for goal at just 33.3 per cent accuracy in his debut season in 2012.

Former Collingwood and North Melbourne hero Sav Rocca joined the Blues as a kicking coach ahead of the 2017 season and worked closely with Casboult to improve his accuracy from 39.1 per cent to 56.7 per cent in the first year. But after a largely lacklustre first half of the season in 2018, then Carlton coach Brendon Bolton lost confidence and dropped the wayward forward to the VFL after Round 15.

“We think he’s just got to grow in some of his impact up forward,” Bolton said at the time. “There are some inconsistencies in that.”

However, Casboult’s growth came in an entirely different role. Casboult has described being dropped in 2018 as the “turning point” in his career. He went back to Carlton’s VFL affiliate Northern Blues and found renewed purpose.

“He freed himself up in the mind a little bit,” former Northern Blues coach Josh Fraser said.

“Our conversation was around going out and enjoying your footy, getting to as many contests as you can, setting an example as an older guy.”

The time in the VFL helped Casboult rediscover his love for footy – and his confidence.

Despite being so stable in defence for much of last year, Casboult has returned forward this season with great effect.

Against Essendon last weekend, he kicked three goals.

“He’s so much more comfortable now,” Maclure said. “I think putting him down back has turned him into a serious player. He’s a good fella and I’m proud of him for pulling through.”