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The “impossible situation” facing Carlton coach Michael Voss
Andrew Slevison • July 7th, 2025 10:59 am
Under-siege Carlton coach Michael Voss is facing an “impossible situation”.
The Blues are in free-fall after losing to Collingwood by 56 points at the MCG on Friday night which was their third defeat in a row.
Their current situation has them sitting 12th on the ladder with a 6-10 record and at risk of a wasted season.
SEN’s Kane Cornes, who has been in Voss’ corner, now admits he is getting nervous for the Brisbane Lions champion who is in his fourth season at the helm at Ikon Park.
“I have both been really supportive of Vossy. I feel like that was three or so weeks ago and things have shifted slightly off the back of their performance and a lack of response,” Cornes said on SEN’s Fireball.
“I’m starting to get nervous and hearing this from Vossy after the game is not a great sign.”
Voss said post-match: “My job is to look at what worked and what didn’t work and we put our eyes in on that on Sunday.
“It’s clear that we need to be able to have some pretty important conversations.
“We let our club down tonight. We want our supporters to be proud of us and we didn’t do that tonight.”
Cornes continued: “For the second week in a row as well.”
Cornes admits this is a tricky situation for Voss.
He has incoming CEO Graham Wright hovering over his shoulder and according to Cornes has been acting “strangely” on game day.
“It’s an impossible situation for him to be in. We keep speaking about Graham Wright and the camera shots going to him in the stands,” he said further.
“You look at things and you analyse them. Why is Michael Voss sitting on the steps of the coaches box? I’m going, ‘What are you doing?’
“The week before that he was in the box but he was at the back of the bench with the magnet board not even watching the game.
“All eyes are on him, he must feel that every move he makes… we’re lip-reading him when he speaks to the leaders and you can see exactly what he has said at three-quarter time.
“The pressure it almost too much. But he is acting a little bit strangely. To start the game sitting on the steps of the coaches to then move to the back, hands in pockets, doesn’t really look engaged.”
Co-host David King chimed in: “We’re not overassessing are we?”
Cornes added: “Absolutely we are.”
King dug deep into Carlton’s game style, suggesting that under Voss they have turned way too defensive which is negatively impacting all others facts of their game.
“They’ve overcorrected on being too aggressive, they’ve gone too far with the defensive side of the game,” King said.
“This is what annoys me with clubs that don’t trust their players. It always starts with not trusting the back six. This is the problem why teams defend with the footy which is the fakest profile of all time.
“I see North Melbourne doing it, I see Essendon doing it, I see Fremantle doing it, I saw Richmond doing it when they were just an average team before they scrapped it. I saw Geelong doing it when there were a good team but were getting to finals and losing.
“I think Vossy had gone too far. Should that get him sacked? Well, in the end it’s wins and losses that get you sacked in this game. There’s no hiding from that.
“I do think he’s got some credits on the board over the last couple of years. But he’s got a big seven weeks in front of him.
“The margins in the end matter. If he has a 100-pointer, they’ll come from everywhere. If he can get through with some solid performances I think he’ll be ok.”
The task ahead for the Blues gets even more daunting when they meet the Lions at Marvel Stadium on Thursday night.
They currently sit 16 points and percentage out of the top eight and just one win and percentage above the bottom four.
Carlton plays the Lions (MS), Melbourne (MCG), Hawthorn (MCG), Fremantle (OS), Gold Coast (MS), Port Adelaide (MS) and Essendon (MCG) in the remaining seven rounds.
