For months, interim Carlton Football Club coach Josh Fraser kept his ambitions for the vacant senior coaching role closely guarded. Now, after 13 weeks steering the struggling team to an extraordinary turnaround, the caretaker has broken his silence and made his aspirations official: he is ready to take on the permanent top job.
When Michael Voss departed the club earlier this season, Carlton sat at a disappointing 1 win and 8 losses, their finals hopes all but written off by fans and analysts alike. Since Fraser stepped into the interim role, he has revitalized the squad, climbing the ladder to put the Blues firmly in contention for the final spot in this year’s AFL finals series. For weeks he deflected questions about whether he would pursue the permanent position, but he shared a definitive update with reporters this week.
“A fortnight ago, the club came to me and asked me to be a part of this coaching process and then this week I was in a position to go back to the club and accept that offer to go through the process,” Fraser explained in a press interaction. “I will present it to the coaching panel this week and now I can focus my attention to this week’s game. I’ve said all along if I committed to that process I was all in, so now it’s in the hands of the selection panel and we’ll see what comes of it.”
Fraser’s extended interim tenure — a rare opportunity for a caretaker to lead a club across a large portion of a full season — has played a key role in confirming his confidence to step into the senior role permanently. When he first took the interim position 13 to 14 weeks ago, he admitted he was unsure if he was prepared to put his name forward for the permanent job.
“That wasn’t to say I wasn’t, it was just that in my mind at that time, I wasn’t completely sure that I was ready to put my hand up,” he said. “This opportunity I feel has been able to fast-track me in many ways. It has been quite unique that you get an extended period of time to be a senior coach. There are so many things that whilst you’re not exposed to everything, there are so many things you are exposed to that ordinarily you wouldn’t be.”
That on-the-job experience has reinforced the coaching philosophies Fraser developed over his career, he added, leaving him certain he is prepared for the full-time role. “I think having that little bit of experience now behind me, reinforcing some of the philosophies I’ve been able to develop over the years. Through conversations and through my own thinking, analysing, I think I’m ready.”
Fraser noted that aspiring senior coaches constantly refine their approach and vision ahead of any opening, and his candidacy will center on the dramatic improvement the Blues have shown over his 12 weeks in charge, paired with the untapped potential he still sees in the playing group.
“The growth we’ve shown has been exciting but that’s balanced out with I think we’ve got a lot more to go,” he said. “I think there’s the reality too that there’s 19 jobs to be a senior coach … I felt like it was the right time. I am as excited about this group as a lot of our Carlton supporters would be.”