Carlton may be flying under interim coach Josh Fraser, but Patrick Cripps believes Michael Voss deserves far more credit than he is receiving. The Blues captain insists the foundations for their dramatic resurgence were laid before Voss stepped away.
Carlton’s season appeared to be over when Voss resigned in May following a disastrous start that produced just one victory from the club’s opening nine matches.
The Blues were sitting 16th, confidence had disappeared and another painful rebuild appeared inevitable.
What followed has been one of the most remarkable turnarounds of the 2026 AFL season.
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Under Fraser, Carlton has won seven consecutive matches, climbed into the wildcard and finals conversation and rediscovered the resilience that had been missing during the opening two months.
However, Cripps is not prepared to allow that transformation to become an indictment on the former coach.
Speaking publicly ahead of Carlton’s clash with Hawthorn, the Blues captain praised Voss’ influence and said much of the work behind the club’s resurgence began during the pre-season.
According to news.com.au, Cripps believes the improvement has come through relatively small tactical adjustments, increased confidence and players finally executing the standards Voss had worked to establish before his departure.
It is a significant show of support.
The easy interpretation of Carlton’s winning streak is that Fraser arrived, changed everything and immediately repaired a broken football team.
The reality appears more complicated.
Fraser has undoubtedly made an enormous impact. Carlton is playing with greater composure, controlling the tempo of matches and finding ways to win close contests that repeatedly slipped away earlier in the season.
The interim coach has also used Cripps differently at times, allowing the powerful midfielder to become a marking target while Carlton’s bigger bodies help the Blues slow matches and retain possession.
That tactical identity has helped Fraser produce the best winning percentage of any caretaker coach to reach this stage of a tenure since the turn of the century. The Sporting Base has already argued that Carlton can no longer ignore Josh Fraser as a legitimate candidate for the permanent coaching position.
But Cripps’ comments suggest Fraser did not inherit an empty cupboard.
Voss led Carlton to a preliminary final in 2023 and another finals appearance in 2024 before the club’s form deteriorated across the following season and the opening rounds of 2026.
His tenure ended after a 1-8 start, with the club explaining that it had not seen the intended evolution in its football despite significant changes to the coaching department and playing list.
When Voss left, Cripps described him as a “great mentor” and a “great coach” and said he could not speak highly enough of the relationship they had developed.
“I’m a bit flat because I’ve been through some good times and also some tough times with him,” Cripps told reporters following Voss’ departure.
“I’ve got a great relationship with Vossy. From my end, I couldn’t speak highly enough of Vossy.”
Those comments carried extra weight because Cripps has now lived through four permanent Carlton coaching departures during his career.
Mick Malthouse, Brendon Bolton, David Teague and Voss have all left while Cripps has attempted to drag the club back towards premiership contention.
That history may explain why he is reluctant to reduce Carlton’s current form to a simple change-of-coach narrative.
Voss did not get the results required to remain in the job, but he helped rebuild standards, relationships and belief during a five-year tenure that included Carlton’s deepest finals run in more than two decades.
Fraser has since unlocked something the former coach could not consistently produce.
Both things can be true.
The more pressing question now is whether Fraser should be rewarded with the permanent role.
Carlton has established a four-person coaching selection panel featuring chief executive Graham Wright, president Rob Priestley, football boss Chris Davies and former West Coast premiership coach Adam Simpson. The club has promised to conduct a thorough process rather than making an emotional appointment based solely on its mid-season winning streak.
Cripps refused to be drawn into publicly endorsing Fraser, instead focusing on Carlton making the most of a season that looked finished only weeks ago.
That is understandable.
The captain’s job is to lead the team, not appoint its coach.
However, Carlton’s resurgence has created a fascinating dilemma.
The Blues must assess whether Fraser has genuinely transformed the football program or whether he has simply allowed the work already completed under Voss to finally take effect.
Cripps clearly believes Voss deserves to remain part of the story.
After everything the former coach invested in Carlton, that recognition is warranted.
