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At the start of the AFL season, any followers of football were of the belief that the Gold Coast would not play finals this year. Ten rounds in, no one could legitimately suggest that will be the case.
The Suns are now a game clear in third spot on the ladder.
Not in the past 15 years has a team sat in the top three at this point of the season and not played finals. The question now is not will the Suns play finals, but can they finish in the top four?
The answer for me, based on recent form, is yes.
The naysayers will point to the quality of opposition they have beaten. Of their seven wins, six have been against teams occupying the bottom six spots on the ladder.
Believers like myself would point to the opposition to whom they have lost. Their only losses so far have come against last years grand finalists. That’s hardly something to be ashamed of.
I would also bring up the manner in which they have been winning. They seem to flick a switch at different stages that makes them virtually unstoppable.
Against both North Melbourne and St Kilda they kicked seven goals in the first quarter. Against Brisbane they kicked seven in both the third and fourth quarters.
In their match against the Bulldogs on Sunday they took that to another level. Late in the second quarter the game was in the balance, with the Suns leading by only a point. From then until early in the last quarter they outscored the Dogs 12 goals to 1, building their lead to 70 points and putting the game beyond doubt.
In the third quarter they had 15 scoring shots to 3. Say what you will about ordinary opposition, but it takes a genuinely good team to score like that.
The most significant aspect of the win at the weekend was that they largely did it without the influence of Gary Ablett.
While the reigning Brownlow winner finished the match with 24 touches, his first half saw him tagged out of the game by Liam Picken. Into the void walked future leaders like Dion Prestia, Jaeger O’Meara and Harley Bennell.
It was a team performance, and what a team they are. They have all the hallmarks of a champion side: solid, dependable defenders, plenty of run through the halfback line and midfield, in and under ball winners, and tall forward targets that can mark the ball and kick goals.
Then there is the almost immeasurable factor: class.
Of course, the true test is still to come. Between now and Round 16 they play Adelaide, West Coast and Hawthorn interstate, and Sydney, Geelong and Collingwood at home. With their confidence as high as it surely must be, one would pencil them in for at least three wins in that stretch.
From there they have return bouts against Bulldogs, Brisbane and St Kilda. They could well go into the home straight with 13 wins and an eye on the top four.
They may not seriously challenge for a premiership this year but they will make the eight. Should they manage to win a final they will definitely be in contention in 2015.
From there, like the fiery ball of gas from which they derive their moniker, the sky’s the limit.
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