Embattled Carlton coach David Teague wants to bring a ruthless edge to his beleaguered side and says there has been growth individually rather than collectively in his tenure.
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Teague urged supporters to stick with his side who slipped to 4-9 for the campaign after a third straight defeat, a season-high 36-point loss away to GWS on Saturday.
They kicked just three goals in the first half, all of which came from free kicks and then, having slashed a 39-point deficit to 12, they conceded five of the last six goals.
Teague was upset GWS laid 37 more tackles, by disconnects in his side's defence and poor ball use.
Carlton are set to miss finals for an eighth straight year with a mid-season review of the football department by an external panel already ordered.
Teague said it was hard and frustrating to watch Saturday's game.
"Right now we are in a real dip we are not playing great football we are not playing with confidence," Teague said.
"I'd be asking our fans to stick with us, they are pretty loyal, they are passionate.
"The players are hurting, the coaches are hurting, our fans would be really hurting. They have been so good to us, they stick by us.
"We understand that it would be frustrating for them right now, but we think If we continue to work hard, we're got to get better, we think we've got that in for us.
"You've got to have honest accountable feedback and we'll do that.
"We will be really strong and clear with the boys of what's happening and then you've got to work really hard and that's our challenge."
Teague insisted there had been some growth in his tenure, during which Carlton have amassed a 17-24 win-loss record.
"There's been some real growths, unfortunately it's probably been a little bit more from an individual point of view," Teague said.
"As a collective, our ability to execute as a whole has probably dropped away.
"I think we're not playing with the confidence and belief that we had when I first took over.
"I want to see us use the ball better. I want to see us be strong in the contest.
"I want to see our defence get better, I want to see a ruthless team that buys into it and gets the job done when it's time to get the job done one-on-one, but then also connects to a system and play their role in a system."
Australian Associated Press
