The Carlton Football Club is pleased to confirm AFL Head of Development Luke Power as its VFL Coach for the 2023 season.

Power has been instrumental in nurturing and developing talent coming through the Blues’ AFL side over the last three years, which includes playing a pivotal hand in establishing Carlton’s first standalone VFL side in 19 years.

He landed at IKON Park in 2019 as AFL Head of Development after five seasons with Greater Western Sydney as an assistant coach plus three years with the AFL Academy, and in 2021 he was named the AFL Coaches Association’s Assistant Coach of the Year.

Power will retain his current position as AFL Head of Development while replacing the outgoing Dan O’Keefe in the VFL Coach role, who informed the Club last week of his decision to relocate his family to Warrnambool for lifestyle reasons.  

The Club will now begin the process of providing the appropriate support around Power in both the VFL and development program.

The Carlton Reserves made a significant impact in season 2022, which included an elimination final win over Collingwood, and with a strong wave of talent coming through, Power was looking forward to take a hands-on role in nurturing those players on a match day.

“The talent we have on our list are hungry and determined to achieve success, whether that be at VFL or AFL level, and it’s our job to give them the tools to be able to go out there and maximise their opportunities,” Power said.

“It has been a pleasure working alongside Dan O’Keefe for the past two years, and I look forward to further building on the successful culture and connection that he and others have created as we move forward into a new chapter for our VFL side.”

“Our focus for the VFL side remains the same as AFL level: establishing a strong, high-performance culture that translates into winning consistent games of football, to give us the best chance of making an impact at the end of the year.”

Carlton Head of Football Brad Lloyd said Power is perfectly placed to step into this role with his in-depth knowledge of the program.

“Luke has been heavily involved with the VFL side since we were granted a standalone licence ahead of the 2021 season and has led the way in building our development pathway since he arrived at the Club at the end of 2019,” Lloyd said.

“When you consider his intimate knowledge of our program, along with the fact that Luke is considered among the elite coaches of young players in the country, the decision to appoint him as VFL Coach is a clear one and well-deserving for the dedication and passion he has shown to helping our players maximise their careers.

“Our VFL and AFL sides share the same world-class facilities and the programs work hand-in-hand with each other, so having Luke continuing to work closely with both sides will be a huge benefit for all involved.

“We will now get to work to put the right support around Luke to ensure our VFL and development program continues to go from strength to strength.”