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          Judging the biggest overreactions from the AFL's Round 4 games

          • ESPN
          Apr 7, 2025, 05:17 PM ET

          Round 4 of the 2025 AFL season is in the books. So, it's time to react ... or overreact.

          Carlton has slumped to 0-4 and face potential wooden-spooners West Coast this week. So is it unreasonable to think that Blues coach Michael Voss could be sacked if his side can't win considering preseason expectations? Plus, was Mac Andrew's showmanship a step too far?

          Let's get to this week's overreactions, where we judge a few major takeaways as legitimate or irrational.

          Michael Voss is out of a job if Carlton loses to West Coast

          The Blues aren't on the ropes, they're on the canvas. It's been four straight losses to open the season for Carlton, a side that entered the year with so much promise and expectation that this could actually be their year.

          Attention now turns to Gather Round and a date with the lowly Eagles. A month ago, few would have penciled this game in as being one that could have league-wide ramifications, but boy, have things changed...

          Verdict: Not an overreaction

          The Blues simply cannot lose to West Coast. Yes, the Hawks overcame a 0-5 hole last season to feature in September, but a loss to the perennially poor Eagles -- a side that has won just 10 games since the beginning of 2022, and yet again have looked dire in 2025 -- would signify so much more than just a horror early season record for Carlton. It would all but confirm change at the top is desperately required.

          There's still far too much top-end talent on this list for the Blues to be languishing in the bottom four. Does the coach deserve all of the blame? Almost certainly not. But that's likely to be an irrelevant factor for a club that certainly hasn't been afraid of pulling the trigger and making such drastic changes in the past.

          Would they make the call to move on from Voss in the days that follow, if they are to lose to the Eagles? Maybe. Maybe not. But the likelihood Voss is there deep in the year will take a significant hit, one he just might not be able to recover from at all. The Blues must win.

          Mac Andrew was wrong to give Riley Thilthorpe a spray

          Gold Coast defender Mac Andrew wasn't having the best day against the Crows. His opponent, Riley Thilthorpe, had kicked a bag of five goals through three quarters and was looming large as the match-winner for the visitors.

          But Andrew's tough afternoon didn't stop him from getting in the ear of Thilthorpe in the dying moments of the game. First he clapped in his face, then, at the fulltime siren, he flashed a big 'thumbs up' in Thilthorpe's direction.

          Verdict: Overreaction

          We need to add the caveat that, of course, we don't know what was said between the pair. We also don't know who started the chatter, which did appear to be going on for some time. But from what we have seen, it's all fair game. Two players went head-to-head all day, it got a bit fiery, and some words were exchanged. So what? Don't we want to see a bit of passion on the footy field? Not only that, but we should love seeing it from a Gold Coast Sun.

          What we do know is the Andrew-Thilthorpe match-up will be one to watch for a decade. Can't wait for the two teams to square off again at Adelaide Oval in Round 19!