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AFL Senior Coach Michael Voss is cognisant of the talk and storylines heading into Carlton's season opener against Sydney, but the Blues' sole focus will lie on what they can control. 

Confirming a pair of AFL debutants but remaining coy on who could be joining them, see what Voss had to say when speaking to media at IKON Park.

On Jagga Smith and Harry Dean's debut:

“We do have some debutants: it might surprise you, Jagga actually got a game. The other one is Harry as well. They’re two great stories.

“A father-son joining us, a high draft pick who’s really impressed so far in the exposure we’ve had with him. He’s going to draw a very long partnership with ‘Weiters’ down there for a long period of time.

“Most people have seen Jagga over the past couple of weeks and the impact he can have on our games, how valuable he’ll be to us in the short-term and long-term. We’ve been watching a lot of that over the last couple of years during pre-season, he finally gets his first game. He’s a pretty excited man.”

On any other potential club debutants:

"We’ll hold on the rest, because there are a few. We’ve also got to finalise our training… the main one for us is to make sure ‘Weiters’ gets through fit and healthy. We’re expecting he will, but we need training to tell us that before making any final decisions.

"There’s some obvious ones in there [club debutants], but we’ll try and hold off on those at this point in time."

On Jacob Weitering's recovery:

"We’ve been stepping up his progression over the last two training sessions, it’s been a steady introduction.

"It’s all leaning towards the positives… but we’ve still got to make sure he gets through this particular training session, we’ll get his views on that before making any final calls.

"The other important thing to note is we’re determined to go up there and get the job done, whether he’s there or not. I said to him ‘if you’re right, you’ll play - if you’re not, don’t worry, there’ll be another game seven days later’."

On Charlie Curnow playing for Sydney:

"We’re fully aware of the capacity the guy has. Some guys have spent eight or nine years with him, I spent four years training and in games - he’s certainly got x-factor.

"At the same time, if it works out that ‘Weiters’ becomes a match-up for him, I’ve seen those battles and they know each other very, very well. It’ll be an intriguing contest. The best way to impact that is further up the ground, there’s pressure on the ball and that it’s not coming down too cleanly."

On the Charlie v Carlton narrative heading into the game:

"I think everyone else is Charlie-focused, we don’t make it about him. We’ve got a job to do and we’re pretty determined to get it done.

"It’s not going to be about him, it’s not going to be about Will, it’s not going to be about Ollie. There’ll be a lot of chat about that, and I understand that’s the story people will talk about.

"It’s very easy to shift your eyes on much bigger things than just one person or one game."

On expectations facing Carlton in 2026:

"I don’t know what those expectations are, because I don’t pay a lot of attention to them. We’ve got internal expectations about how we want to play, what type of teammates we are.

"What we have built confidence on is we’ve seen a new group go out there and play some pretty good football and they’re bringing great energy.

"If people are watching at home or at the ground, they’re seeing a really energetic group that’s bringing effort and playing really well together as a team. That’s what we want to make sure we transfer: whether that’s at the MCG or Opening Round at the SCG, they’re our expectations."

On responding to Carlton's 2025 season:

“I’m focused on two days and getting the next two days right. I don’t look back 12 months.

“We started the pre-season campaign and shifted a few things. It’s fine for me to stand here and talk about it, but at the end of the day, it’s how we turn up, how we action it. We’re on the eve of that.

“We could have upwards of 10 or 11 new players from how we finished last year to how we’re going to turn up this year - how can you compare 12 months ago when you’ve got almost half your team change to this one? We’ll lean into what we’ve got rather than what’s not there.”

On Carlton's ball movement:

"A steady progression, moving the needle in the right direction is what I would say. Finding those moments to be really dynamic, as well as knowing those times to be composed.

"I would imagine that this game in the first 30 minutes is going to be very fast. The mistakes will be quite high quite early, so how we settle into that will be very important.

"Can we get transfer? That’s what we’re after."

On the change the Blues have undergone in recent months:

"One of the first things I did was put the team up when we played our first practice match and went through guys that played less than half the season or guys that joined us. If you do that exercise yourself, there’s a lot of names in there - there’s got to be some patience in that.

"In the last couple of weeks to see some transfer, that might be on the back of some more experienced guys that have joined us. We’ve got guys with 150 games or 180 games, they’ve seen systems and how models work.

"They’ve gelled really well, and that’s what I’ve been most impressed by. You’re always a bit more reserved until you see it under real heat - we’re going to get that."

On a new-look forward line:

"It’s the most exciting. The different avenues to goal, what they’ve been able to produce is really impressive.

"To be able to come together in a short period of time and play the way they have and the details, that’s been the impressive part. They’re playing with energy, it’s dynamic, it’s diverse. They’re stepping into all of it, which is great to see.

"We hope that we get some of that when it comes to the first game."