Carlton coach Michael Voss was more "pleased" than relieved to walk away with a win on Thursday night after a week filled of critics.
The Blues' Opening Round performance against Sydney sought scolding assessments after letting a 12-goal third quarter blow open the game.
But no assessment was more damning than former captain Sam Docherty, who's leaked remarks put the club into disrepute, and turning the heat up on the pressure cooker.
"Who would be a coach, hey? Who wants to do this? Seriously, you've gotta be a madman," Voss said immediately after the four-point win.
"Tonight was a little bit about our club. We've been targeted the whole week, both inside and out, and we get away for a win, and I'm just pleased our supporters can walk away and have a smile on our face and wear their jumper with pride and wear their scarf around their neck.
"I feel like this one was for our club, I really do. It was hard fought, it wasn't exactly the way we wanted it. There was no bow on it. We had to work for it, and we got it. I'm just really pleased for my club that we were able to do it.
"I can't stress enough that we spent a lot of time within our group ensuring we value what is happening on the inside. We see what's happening on the inside, and we've seen the shift in that energy.
"This meant a lot for our players tonight, to get the job done. But we're not looking at it through rose-coloured glasses, either. There's some realness in where we are, we accept that we're not the finished product. We have work to do. But what we won't do, is not celebrate when we need to."
It was history beginning itself from the corresponding match in 2025, where the Tigers stormed home from 41 points down to steal the victory.
The Blues' defensive collapse in the second half, which continues to be a problem over the past 12 months, almost reared its ugly head once again, while its attack looked lifeless, kicking one major in the final two quarters.
"We couldn't keep the ball in our front half," Voss said. "They were able to live in their front half.
"You get criticised for last week and not being able to put together a third quarter. You go away and reflect on that and it's clearly something we've got to get better at.
"But what I did ask our boys to do was fight. When teams surge, our ability to be able to hold went longer than I would like, so there's some reinforcement there.
"It just meant we had our backs to the wall. All we could do was fight out of it. You've got to begin somewhere, don't you? So that's where we begin.
"It's hard-fought. It wasn't exactly the way we wanted it, there was no bow on it. We had to work for it and we got it. I'm just really pleased for our club that we were able to do that."
Carlton will have three days off before enjoying a Round 2 bye, heading into the break with a 1-1 record.
They'll return to face Melbourne on Sunday March 29, before an intriguing clash against North Melbourne on Good Friday (April 4).
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