THE PHOTO brings back mixed memories for Jack Silvagni.

An iconic black and white image, snapped by AFL.com.au's Michael Willson, captured the exact moment Silvagni's first win in Carlton colours was secured. For a player whose name is so synonymous with the football club and the suburb, the emotions felt in that single flash of a camera are palpable.

On that day, back in 2017, the club was debuting its 'Blueout' guernsey, a jumper that celebrates the suburb of Carlton and the bluestone paving that lines its famous Lygon, Rathdowne, Drummond, Elgin, Faraday and Nicholson streets.

Nearly a decade on, the Blues will wear the jumper again in their King's Birthday Eve clash against arch foes Essendon this weekend. Its return has given Silvagni, and plenty of others at Princes Park, a period to reflect on the time – and the challenges – that have come in between.

"I mean, it was round three," Silvagni says of the picture. "It's not exactly one to write home about, but it was a pretty cool photo. It was nice to have that moment captured. But, ideally, it would happen a bit later in the year next time.

"It took a while to get there. It was the start of my second year. I remember it was teeming with rain and it was a scrappy day. I reckon I had more tackles than touches on the day. It was pretty emotional and it was nice to get the monkey off the back. A bit has happened in between."

That's an understatement. Silvagni, as the famous father-son, arrived at Carlton at the end of 2015 as one of the faces of a long-term list rebuild that remains under construction to this day. Jacob Weitering, as the No.1 draft pick that year, was another.

Both have endured plenty of gruelling days at Ikon Park. They've lived through three coaches, four chief executives, three presidents, several stints in the VFL, and even chops and changes to their position. Weitering, now an All-Australian full back, was in the midst of a spell being trialled as a forward on that rainy day against Essendon back in 2017.

"It's been up and down," Weitering tells AFL.com.au. "It's tough. You look back at the early days and I think we all had our challenges and journeys, playing in different positions. It was three games in the VFL for me. How many for you?"

"I reckon I've had 15," Silvagni responds. "Charlie Curnow and Harry McKay played Development League, though. We didn't."

"We got a win in it, though," Weitering continues, referencing the jumper. "Hopefully that's a good omen coming into this week. Against the Dons, I think it just blends well into what we're going after as a team, our identity within the club as well. It's a good looking jumper and hopefully we can get a win in it this week."

For both players, wins – like that famous slog against Essendon back in 2017 – had been few and far between during their initial years at Carlton. But after surging into a preliminary final in 2023, and sneaking back into September last year, this season was billed as one of hope.

However, having turned for the bye at 4-7, the Blues once again find their season at a crossroads. Sunday night, as well as being a significant occasion against an old rival in a marquee MCG matchup, is also a must-win fixture in the context of the side's campaign.

"We understand the frustration that fans have," Silvagni says. "I've been a Carlton fan before I was a Carlton player, so I've lived that reality. I get it. There's now a lot of boys who grew up Carlton fans as well, so I'm sure they're in the same boat.

"We're all working really hard. It's not like we're coming in and trying to miss kicks, or trying not to score, or trying to turn it over. We're working really hard and we're reviewing games really closely.

"We're not waiting for the moment to happen. We know it's a grind. It'll turn, but we can't just wait for it to happen. We've got to do it. I think we're working towards that and there's a great amount of confidence in the work we're doing that it will change if we continue to go on like that.

"We weren't going great at the start of 2023, either. There was a lot of talk about going back to Ed Curnow's joint again and sinking cans and whatnot, but we played the Bombers after that and we got done. We were shocking, we were really bad. It was the week after that it really clicked."

Silvagni is referring to the mid-season camping trip to Ed Curnow's house in Torquay in 2023, a team-bonding exercise that was later defined as a pivotal moment in the side's campaign. Carlton went from 4-8-1, having lost six consecutive matches, to winning 11 of their next 12 games on either side of that venture to surge into a preliminary final.

While nothing as formal was planned during last week's mid-season bye – some Carlton players caught up in Port Douglas, while others ventured to Noosa together – there remains confidence this season can still be turned around.

"With the core group that we've got, and some of the guys that are coming through, I truly believe we can do something special," Weitering says.

"We've shown that we can do it before and there's probably been a lot of conversation about 2023. Fans are coming up to us and saying, 'Are we going to do what we did then?' It hasn't happened yet. But we're the holder of our own destiny, if you like. We've got to apply ourselves every single week and take it one week at a time.

"We've got an awesome block of games coming up where we can show our stuff and hopefully put a score on the board, which has been the biggest challenge for us this year. I know the boys up forward are going to work on that, and us as a defence will continue what we've been doing.

"There's a quiet confidence that we can apply ourselves that way, but it's all talk until you do it. We've got to put it into action."

Part of the reason for that confidence stems from Silvagni's move down back. Carlton has long hunted a reliable defensive partner to plug alongside Weitering and has – perhaps unsurprisingly – eventually found it in the son of the AFL's Team of the Century full back.

"It seems to be in the blood, doesn't it?" Weitering says.

"He's been great. Without going into too much detail, in recent years we've probably been after some consistency down there in the keys department. The way 'SOS' applied himself up forward was unbelievable for us, especially for the last couple of years when he's been able to play at both ends.

"It's the most synergy and chemistry I think I've had in a backline with someone, maybe other than with Liam Jones. It's probably been the most positive, if not the strongest part of our game this year. I'm pretty proud of that so far.

"He's got many really good traits, both up forward and down back. His one-on-one ability, I'd argue he's one of the best kicks in the team, his ability to find something out of the backline, and his intercept game as well has certainly been on show. It makes my job a whole lot easier when you've got guys you can trust. He's been brilliant."

Silvagni himself instigated the conversation with coach Michael Voss last summer to spend the pre-season in the backline, hoping for consistency in a single position after a decade where he's been thrown forward, back, through the midfield, into the ruck, and even sporadic stints tagging some of the opposition's best onballers.

"The best thing about defending is you're in a contest," Silvagni says. "You can play team defence and system and all of that, but the cut and thrust of it is really you against your man. You're trying to not let him get a kick or kick a goal. I really like the simplicity of it all, while learning the intricacies and the detail of it.

"I like to think one of the best facets of my game is being able to compete, so being able to bring that to the backline and lean on these guys and work with them, I've really enjoyed that."

While versatility has been an important feature of Silvagni's game, the reliable 27-year-old has still felt both the pleasure and the pain that comes with being a plug-and-play option at either end of the field. But now secure in the one position, with the trust of his teammates and his coaches, the fan-favourite is unsurprisingly playing better than ever.

"Versatility is important, but if you haven't locked down one role and you're plugging holes, you can often be the first guy in but the first guy out as well. That's sort of where I've found myself a bit," Silvagni says.

"It's nice to know that I've got the trust of the boys down back and the trust of the coaches that I can come in and play a role. We've seen at times, especially early in the year, that if things aren't going our way and we need a look up forward then I can be thrown forward.

"It's nice just to have that string to add to the bow. But I'm really enjoying settling in the one spot and being able to train there and pick it up and work consistently with the boys. I feel like that's really helped my footy."

Now, the next marker for Silvagni to achieve is to have a moment captured that's even better than that iconic image from back in 2017. But this time, he wants it to reflect a celebration that takes place a little later in the year.

"I hurt my knee at the end of 2023 and obviously missed all of last year, so I am yet to play in a final. I would really like to play in a final. That would be good," Silvagni says.

"It's been nice having a core group of boys to come through with. A lot of us are really close. It's not always going to be easy. Obviously, the start of the year hasn't gone as wanted or as planned. But, with our training standards and our application, if we continue to apply ourselves the way we know how, it should hold us in good stead for the rest of the year.

"There's still a lot of footy to be played. We've got to take confidence out of the stuff we're doing well and continue to improve on the stuff we're doing poorly. If we do that, the wins will take care of themselves."