HOW ABOUT those kids?

Carlton's senior contingent were once again big fans of the way the Club's emerging core of young players carried themselves in a crucial win on the weekend.

Speaking post-match to various media outlets, here's what they had to say.

Adam Cerra on Jagga Smith:

"He plays like a 28-year-old with the mature head on his shoulders. He had a really balanced game, he’s going to be a good player for a long time - we love having him in the group."

Patrick Cripps on Talor Byrne:

"He is [a new cult hero]. We just love what he does. He’s pretty shy, a good country boy, but he cracks in and plays the right way. He’s one guy that we highlight internally every week, with the unrewarded stuff he does. He impacted on the scoreboard, it was reward for all his hard work."

Sam Walsh on Jagga Smith:

"Going back to last year, he couldn’t have handled himself any better for a young kid going through a devastating time. He did as much as he could in that year to prepare himself, and he’s seeing the benefits. We’ve known for a long time that he’s going to be a good player, it’s been awesome to see him have the impact he has. He’s helping us win games of footy, which he’s most passionate about."

Ollie Florent on Talor Byrne:

"He’s a gun. He trains like that and I’ve seen it for a long time. He’s starting to really blossom into an unbelievable small forward. He’s such a great kid, it’s not a surprise to us boys with what he can do. It’s great to see him put up consistent performances, the way he attacks the ball is second to none. I absolutely love playing with him."

Brodie Kemp on Harry Dean:

"He cracks me up. I don’t reckon I have [celebrated a spoil like that], I don’t think any backman has. ‘Deany’ wears his heart on his sleeve and that’s why we love playing with him, it’s brilliant."

Josh Fraser on young Blues:

"We should take a second to talk about Talor Byrne… he’s really exciting. Carlton supporters should be excited about being part of our footy club moving forward. Then you throw in the Jagga Smiths, the Harry Deans, the Lachie Cowans, the Billy Wilsons, Cooper Lord plays today - there’s a really exciting core group of young players coming through that Carlton fans should be excited by.”

Ollie Florent on the Rising Star race:

"I think Jagga, Talor Byrne and Harry Dean should all win it."