Carlton coach Michael Voss has lauded midfielder George Hewett for his performance in the Good Friday SuperClash against North Melbourne, commending his attention to detail in his preparation to deliver a strong formline to start the season.
Hewett amassed 34 disposals, eight score involvements and a goal in the Blues' 82-point win on Friday, a strong follow-up from his outing against West Coast in Gather Round where the star midfielder accumulated 39 disposals, and was thus awarded the inaugural Superhero medal for best on ground in the Good Friday game.
Pivotal in Carlton's turnaround from an 0-4 start, Voss applauded Hewett for his efforts across the season, where he averages over 30 disposals a game.
"He's been pretty good the last few weeks, to be fair. His season at the start has been quite amazing," Voss said.
"He obviously had another role to do today as well, and for him to be able to execute that and still be able to have an impact in the game the way that he is. He's almost like a credit to his preparation, he's an absolute pro.
"No one puts more detail on his prep than George. He's a much-loved man at our club and the boys love playing with him."
Midfield
Disposals
Tackles
Clearances
Voss also stated there's a bit of belief that Carlton's form is beginning to turn positively after a dreaded 0-4 start to the season. While it will take a history-defying effort to reach September action, teams such as Hawthorn and Sydney in the past have proven in an 0-5 or 0-6 start to the season can be amended, providing Voss faith that the Blues can turn it around completely by the end of the season.
"There's a bit in it, it was really pleasing to see. That's our most consistent performance, there's no doubt about it, our most compelling one that we've played," Voss said.
"I think mainly because, yeah Charlie kicked his goals, but there was a spread of forwards that were able to hit the scoreboard. It's probably not just the fact that they hit the scoreboard; it was the fact that they just bought into their jobs, and they just brought enormous amounts of pressure.
"I felt like our pressure across the whole night, we really just dialled it up. And every ball that they got, we were able to put some good pressure on it and in the end, you hope that overwhelms a team.
"We were really consistent with that across the game, as well as we were with our selfless nature, the way we played. They're continual things that we want to be known for, and what we want our identity to be a part of, and we were able to do that today."
The Blues will face a real challenge against Geelong next week, with a win sure to break any doubt that Carlton are back to their previous form. However, a large loss would only erase the genuineness of their victories over cellar-dwelling sides West Coast and North Melbourne, and raise questions about their season yet again.
