CARLTON coach Brendon Bolton cut an upbeat figure despite his side's 30-point loss to Sydney at the SCG on Friday night.

The margin might have flattered the Blues towards the end of the match, but it certainly didn't reflect the fight and the poise the young Carlton team showed for most of the night.  

The Blues held a one-point lead at half-time and missed a number of chances early in the third quarter before the Swans kicked away.

SWANS DOWN DOUR BLUES Full match coverage and stats

"I think we're on the right track, I've said that all along," Bolton said.

"We were right in the game, particularly even into the third quarter ... some set shots really hurt us that quarter. I think we kicked four points in the third when the game was right on and at that point of the game we had enough inside 50s.

"There's a little bit to learn from that, but we were in the fight for most of the game."

Bolton praised the work ethic of his team and called for a bit of realism, especially considering the age profile of his young list.

He used the analogy of children learning to walk to try and reconcile his team's development in the face of a mounting tally of losses that sees Carlton rock bottom with a 1-10 record, the club's worst first-half of a season since 2002.

JACK'S BACK Five talking points

"When young kids learn to walk, I think about my little fella Ned, when they learn to walk and they fall over it’s really easy to encourage and pick them up because they’re a youngster," he said.

"And we’ve just got to realise sometimes in AFL football with the scrutiny, and that’s part of it I understand it, but it’s important that we don’t put ridiculous amounts of pressure and expectation on guys that are growing.

"I just think there needs to be some balance around that, like Paddy Dow and [Zac] Fisher, those guys are doing really well playing midfield time considering their age profile.

"I’m not saying that you don’t hold to account at all, but I just think we can be balanced sometimes with that and we can expect a lot of guys early in their careers."  

Bolton singled out Liam Jones and Jack Silvagni for some praise, with the latter making his first appearance for the Blues since round six after a stint in the VFL.

"Good to see that Jack Silvagni showed a bit today. Kicked a couple of goals, led up well, played a little bit of mid, forward," Bolton said.

WATCH Brendon Bolton's full post-match media conference

"As I said earlier in the week, with 'Weiters' [Jacob Weitering], [Harry] McKay, Jack, Charlie [Curnow] - all those guys are in their third year and from time to time the VFL will be required. Just good to see some growth there and particularly from Jack.

"I thought Jones was terrific and I thought he intercepted the ball, he held up most of the time and I think the last few weeks he’s built some consistency."

The Blues have a bye next week before a winnable clash back in Melbourne against Fremantle.