There were some worrying signs for the Gold Coast Suns in their loss to the Western Bulldogs in Cairns a fortnight ago.
They were completely outplayed, being dominated in possessions and contested footy, with the Dogs going into the last quarter virtually having double the number of inside 50s.
The match was tight on the scoreboard though, as the Bulldogs hadn’t taken their chances. The Suns actually had a chance of winning, and would have created a record in having the lowest ever inside forward 50s count and still grabbing a victory.
The Bulldogs finally got reward for their effort and ran away with the game to win comfortably as the Suns proved that they were still struggling to win without the great Gary Ablett.
They have been in the top eight for large portions of the season and, although Ablett has been on Brownlow pace, the club seemed to have grown up with Dion Prestia, David Swallow and Harley Bennell reaching their fourth seasons and fast becoming quality midfielders.
Throw in last year’s Rising Star, Jaeger O’Meara, and a favourable draw over the next month, and the Suns were in a good position to lock-in their first finals spot. Opponents such as the Bulldogs, Brisbane, St Kilda and Carlton were all out of finals contention and in the bottom six.
However, after slipping up against the Dogs, they had to redeem themselves in Brisbane against the Lions to not only stay in the finals race, but prove they were the best side in Queensland. They were also keen to prove they were not a one-man show and could win without Gazza.
However, they were a rabble in that first quarter. They hardly competed, which is an embarrassing thing to say about an elite sporting team.
The Lions had a staggering 100 more disposals in the opening term than the Suns as they blitzed the Gold Coast.
They were 41 points down at quarter time. It was a performance that they might have displayed in their first two years in the league, but they could be excused for that as they had so many young players still learning the game.
That can’t be the case any more. They were again like a rudderless ship without the great one. Those young midfielders mentioned earlier in Swallow, O’Meara, Bennell and Prestia had just seven touches between them for the match early in the second term.
Their percentage, already inferior to other teams also vying for the last couple of spots in the eight such as Essendon, North Melbourne, Collingwood and Adelaide, suffered again and they are now almost 10 per cent behind the next worst, the Magpies.
It’s okay to be beaten by a better team, and the Lions obviously were far superior than the Suns on the weekend, but how much of that was the lack of spirit and willingness of the Gold Coast players to put pressure on their opponents?
In that first term Brisbane were running forward like they were at training, having easy shots at goal and kicking seven, so they should have been further in front.
The Saints are the Suns’ next opponents, and they are coming off that dazzling and amazing victory over Fremantle before their bye. Unless the Suns have an appetite for the contest, they will battle to beat St Kilda.
Ablett obviously won’t be there forever and there’s enough talent with experience under their belt to take up the slack without him. They have the players to stay in the finals hunt and show that they have matured as a footy side, but if they can’t beat the bottom sides they don’t deserve to taste September action.
They had some credits in the bank after the Bulldogs loss, but they were all spent in Saturday’s insipid effort. Another defeat this week would surely indicate they are a long way from being ready to mix it with the best in the finals, and that the reliance on Gary Ablett is extremely unhealthy.
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