AFL Oracle: There's always one! Which of last year's bottom five is September-bound in 2024?
We’ve had our appetites whetted by a host of practice games and the Community Series, and now the AFL’s season proper is just days…
The Gold Coast Suns and GWS Giants will play in a match between the AFL’s two most recent expansion teams. Join our live blog with scores and commentary from 1.45pm AEST.
While many experts tipped the Giants to go past the Suns this year as the better team the season hasn’t played out that way thus far.
The Suns have had some good early season results with a win against St Kilda and admirable efforts against Brisbane and Sydney before last week’s 38-point loss to Port Adelaide.
On the other hand the Giants put in a decent performance versus the Swans in Round 1 but have struggled since then, culminating in allowing the Demons to kick 12 goals in the final term last week to give up a 19-point three-quarter time advantage.
This match therefore will be an indicator of whether GWS will go through the second-year blues or will continue to build on their solid base from last year.
While the Giants were overrun by a previously pathetic Melbourne they will have confidence that they can play out the four quarters against the Suns after they outscored Gold Coast by 31-points in the fourth quarter of the inaugural meeting between these teams.
Another twisted positive is Jonathon Patton didn’t play in the Giants’ win against Gold Coast last year, showing GWS can get the job done without their big forward.
Patton will miss the rest of the season after he tore his ACL in Round 3.
Gold Coast suffered a loss at the other end of the ground with Matthew Warnock breaking his arm in the loss to the Power.
In a team also missing former All-Australian defender Nathan Bock this could be a big blow, with a shortage of options to match-up on Jeremy Cameron, Setanta O’hAilpin and Jonathan Giles when he plays forward.
Gary Ablett will be the obvious concern for the Giants.
Despite injuring his hand against the Lions he managed 35 disposals against Port Adelaide the following week.
While a more even spread is ideal for the Suns to win Ablett showed against the Saints that he can drag his team to victory.
Preview written and supplied by Dinny Navaratnam