AFTER encouraging performances away to Geelong and Sydney ahead of the bye, the Blues will look to build when they resume their season against Fremantle at Etihad Stadium on Saturday. 

Refreshed and raring to go, the playing group returned to training at Ikon Park on Monday.

Senior assistant coach (defenders) Cameron Bruce gave Carlton Media the lowdown on the Blues’ return to the track, the challenge posed by the Dockers and the key focuses for the rest of the season.

How did training go today?

The boys had a really good session today. We trained really hard. It was really intense. It’s great that we have a full week to prepare for Fremantle.

What are the keys to defeating Fremantle on Saturday?

Fremantle showed last week that they’re a threatening side. They can move the ball from one end to the other pretty quickly. They certainly did that against Adelaide so it will be a big focus to prevent that.

What have the positive signs shown in the last couple of rounds done for the players’ confidence? 

They’re building belief. We’re showing them the little wins. But they’re still well aware that we’re not sustaining it for long enough to allow us to win. That’s driving them to get better and hopefully get us the best result.

What will be the key focuses heading into the second half of the season?

We want to build on our form over the last couple of weeks. We feel that throughout a fair patch of those games we’ve been in it. There’s been some really positive signs, and now it’s about being able to sustain it and play four full quarters of footy. We think if we can do that we’ve got some winnable games ahead of us. Hopefully that happens, and we have a really positive second half of the year.

Carlton will face Fremantle at Etihad Stadium from 1.45pm this Saturday afternoon. Click here to buy discounted $15 tickets, but you'll need to be quick!