Please Explain: Five Blues who need to lift to save Carlton's season Bryce Gibbs is one of five Blues who needs to lift. IN TODAY'S edition of his weekly Please Explain column, Glenn McFarlane turns the blowtorch on five Blues who need to lift to save Carlton's season. Dear Carlton, Collingwood has rained on your parade twice over the past week, but that doesn't mean 2013 has to be a complete waste in Mick Malthouse's first year as coach. Last Friday was the first occasion, when the Magpies overcame a sluggish start to overwhelm you on the only stage that matters. Then, on Tuesday, when Malthouse invited Blues fans down to a sausage sizzle at Visy Park, the Magpies captured most of the media attention again when troubled defender-wingman Harry O'Brien made his dramatic return to the football club. But that doesn't mean the sizzle has to completely go out on your season. Follow Glenn McFarlane on Twitter @MaccaHeraldSun Yes, Friday night showed up plenty of deficiencies, but few can be attributed solely to the coach, who has inherited a playing list that is further away from a flag that anyone thought. Your list is solid enough, but it needs an overhaul at the end of the season. And as chief executive Greg Swann forecast after the loss to Collingwood, and as club powerbroker Bruce Mathieson has demanded, changes have to be made and recruiting needs to get better for you to seriously challenge for that elusive 17th premiership. After all, Chris Judd is heading towards the end (with one or two years remaining), last year's best and fairest winner Heath Scotland is probably playing his final season, and Jarrad Waite's body and at times his lack of restraint has put pressure on your forward line. The midfield used to be your biggest strength. But it is not as potent as in the past few years - with captain Marc Murphy dealing with issues with his body; Kade Simpson being forced to run off half-back for much of this season; Scotland spending less time in the midfield; and the club's ruck strength in terms of big men not quite translating into ruck dominance. The Blues are 11th, with only six wins from 14 matches. You are two games out of the eight (plus average percentage), so matches like Saturday night against St Kilda are absolutely crucial. It's going to take some big performances over the next two months - with games against St Kilda, North Melbourne, Gold Coast, Fremantle, Western Bulldogs, Richmond, Essendon and Port Adelaide to come - to somehow make the finals. It won't be easy, but it is not impossible. And these five players can help make it happen if they lift their game - or take it to an even higher level. CHRIS YARRAN It's been a stinker of a season for Yarran so far, defined by Malthouse's decision to drop him for his poor body language and a lack of "buy-in" after being named as the sub against Essendon. The coach made an example of him by not playing him the following week against Hawthorn. Yarran's return stands at 17 goals from his 11 games to date, at around 10 disposals per game. Thirteen of those goals came in the first five games. He has kicked only four in the past six, including three against GWS. He needs to be better than that. Carlton needs him to be better than that. Collingwood v Carlton, MCG, Melbourne, Chris Yarran, Picture: Ludbey Wayne Source: MATTHEW KREUZER It might be a harsh call on 'Kreuz', but he just needs to be one day take a game by the scruff of the neck and alter it immeasurably. He doesn't do that often enough. Garry Lyon reckons Kreuzer plays a bit like he is off the field - a respectful, quietly-spoken kind of guy. Lyon wants to see a bit more mongrel and a bit more aggressive. Kreuzer is a good player. But he could be so much better than that, and Carlton needs him to be. Saturday night might be the night for Kreuzer, taking on Ben McEvoy, and it could not come at a better time. What better way to make a statement to the footy world than dominating in your 100th game. MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - JUNE 01: Matthew Kreuzer of the Blues takes a mark during the round ten AFL match between the Carlton Blues and the Greater Western Sydney Giants at Etihad Stadium on June 1, 2013 in Melbourne, Australia. EDDIE BETTS The runner-up in Carlton's best and fairest last year, Betts has not enjoyed anywhere near the same sort of personal success as 2012. There look to be two reasons for this inconsistent, frustrating season to date. The first was injury. A broken jaw against Richmond in Round 1 derailed the early weeks of his season. And then a silly, uncharacteristic act of bumping St Kilda's Nathan Wright cost him three games. In his four games back from the ban, Betts has only kicked five goals - three came against Hawthorn in Round 12. And his poor effort against the Magpies last week can be explained on a hip injury. Hopefully you can expect better things from Eddie in the second half of the season. Hawthorn v Carlton. Melbourne. Eddie Betts, Picture: Ludbey Wayne Source: MITCH ROBINSON The evidence of Robinson's slow start to 2013 is pretty obvious. Just take a look at his strapped up shoulder. The Blues' livewire has been playing hurt, and that's been a significant reason for his frustrating run of performances this year. Perhaps, as a club, you should not have played him at times. Perhaps you know it won't be getting better any time soon. Regardless, if Robinson can somehow get his body right in the second half of the season, he can start making a bigger impact. The Blues need him to do that. BRYCE GIBBS OK, Blues fans, and others, we know Bryce Gibbs is your whipping boy, but the reality is he is having a good season. He would likely be in the club's B&F if counting stopped right now, which also might say a bit about which key players have been missing due to injury. But we suspect Gibbs has plenty more to give. And performances like the one he put in against Collingwood last Friday - where he was most disappointing - only reinforce some people's opinion of him. He needs to maintain a high level, like he showed against Hawthorn in Round 12. If he can do that on a more consistent basis, he can move to smash the perception that some people have of him. Yours Sincerely, Glenn McFarlane