The Gold Coast Suns are quickly falling into the same groove that has haunted them for years.
At various times throughout the season, they’ll be labelled as brave, courageous, valiant and competitive. They’ll receive praise for their good efforts and poor performances will be met with an exasperated cry of familiarity, rather than a genuine analysis of what’s gone wrong.
It’s an insult to the players, the coaching staff and the organisation as a whole. Plenty of people have an opinion, mostly negative, on the Suns and the fact they’ve never made finals creates the question regarding the club’s validity.
That malarkey isn’t worth the time of genuine AFL fans.
No, what’s most insulting to the Suns is the strange mix of coddling and criticism that have gone together hand-in-hand for years.
When focusing on results and on-field play, reviews of the Suns are almost child-like in nature, and ultimately need to stop.
Let’s draw the line and assess the club in 2021, not as a business investment and not as a club in its infancy.
The Suns have had a couple of nice wins and some close losses, but a team pushing for finals would’ve wanted more than that.
Of course, the injury list has been lengthy, to the point where the Suns were missing five of their tallest six players for a prolonged period.
Jariod Witts’ absence as both captain and one of the league’s best ruckmen has been covered valiantly but ultimately unsuccessfully after he turned the Suns into one of the better clearance teams in 2020.
(Michael Dodge/Getty Images)
We haven’t been able to see much of Matt Rowell in his career, but his impact in a handful of games has been big.
Sam Day has been a regular fixture over the past couple of season and, while Ben King has been excellent, more support would be nice.
Connor Budarick’s loss went unnoticed to many, but after just one season, he became a key cog of the defensive unit.
Then, ad hoc unavailabilities of the likes of Touk Miller, Nick Holman and the aforementioned Lemmens have left gaps within the team.
Players like Rory Thompson, Jack Hombsch, Jacob Townsend and Zac Smith may only be seen as insurance, but their absences have created a domino effect that has stretched key positions.
For this reason, any time the Suns lose a close game, they receive an encouraging adjective from analysts that serve to wrap a nice little bow on how Gold Coast tried their best.
Half a season will be lost and the Suns will have won just three or four of their first 11 games, with no one taking notice.
It’s for this reason that the Suns need to set themselves up for a genuine assault on the top eight in 2022, and it starts with making real changes for the rest of this season.
Competitiveness within games is a nice pat on the back for a bottom four side.
The Gold Coast Suns are not a bottom four side, even with the players they have been missing.
There are definitive changes that the coaching staff should be making to look back on 2021 as a step forward, despite the shortcomings that have been thrust upon them.
Clearly, the midfield has developed a nice, tough edge with strong spread away from the contest led by Brandon Ellis’ mini-resurgence.
(Photo by Chris Hyde/Getty Images)
Some may see the makeshift ruck duo of Caleb Graham and Chris Burgess as a success, but Stuart Dew will understand that he cannot do this for the entire season.
By putting these two players in the ruck, particularly Graham, the Suns are stunting the growth of players in their actual positions.
In just his third season and at 20 years of age, Graham has shown the early signs of a promising key defender, with his reach and spoiling ability on full show when the Suns have exposed their defence to an incredible amount of pressure.
By playing him in the ruck, there’s a halt in defensive development that could hurt if it’s prolonged, particularly for a raw prospect.
With three VFL games under his belt, it seems appropriate that Zac Smith has been selected to play to relieve Graham and Burgess of their burdens and if the club doesn’t trust Smith’s body, then the Suns would do well to target a mid-season recruit to fit their needs, such as Southport’s Fraser Thurlow or Norwood’s Michael Knoll.
Former Cat and Port-listed Wylie Buzza has also been a rumoured option for the club.
Gold Coast lead the competition for kicks and are ranked second for marks, quite clearly looking to control possession as their tactic for 2021.
It has resulted in some marvellous individual numbers, with Brandon Ellis and Jack Lukosius both ranked in the top ten for marks.
The Suns control the ball in defence in a similar manner to how West Coast look to maintain possession and manipulate the opposition’s zone.
As things stand though, the team is chipping the ball around aimlessly, with no sustainable end game.
If they were to emulate the Eagles, their ball use would need to be far better and more decisive going forward.
The Eagles operate with a 75.8 per cent disposal efficiency and kick a goal with 28.63 per cent of the inside 50s, averaging 9.1 goal assists per game.
West Coast’s uses short kicking to drag their opponents out of position, which creates easier entries into the forward 50 and makes their offensive transition much more effective.
Gold Coast on the other hand, have a disposal efficiency of 72.5 per cent, kicking a goal with 20.36 per cent of their inside 50s and an average of 6.8 goal assists per game, one of the worst offensive efficiencies in the competition.
In fact, the saving grace with the Suns in offence is their tackling inside 50, ranked fifth in the competition thanks to the tireless efforts of Nick Holman in particular.
With how the Suns are currently playing, they are hoping for a low-scoring contest that stays contested throughout the midfield for their tacklers to really go to work, and once they have the ball, they want to play in a slow methodical manner.
This flies in the face of what we expect to see from this team. A team that is looking to improve must learn to play in multiple ways, but Gold Coast have seemingly committed themselves to a strategy that has no offensive upside, ranked second-last for points scored.
Given the midfield’s strength in tackling and pressure, it behoves coach Dew to take advantage of this clear positive.
The Suns have strong pressure players all over the ground and have the run and spread to be able to run in waves. Through the midfield, Miller is enjoying a career-best season, Hugh Greenwood is the league’s best tackler and David Swallow has recaptured his best form.
(Photo by Russell Freeman/AFL Photos via Getty Images)
Nick Holman, Sam Flanders and Izak Rankine are applying a heap of pressure in attack, and Sean Lemmens is holding down the defensive pressure fort quite well.
The beauty of the Suns’ inside midfielders is their ability to work hard defensively on the ground, so the Suns should make the most of that and have them set up strongly at all stoppages in the back half.
With Jack Bowes, Brandon Ellis, Lachie Weller, Oleg Markov, Rory Atkins and Noah Anderson, the Suns have many players that have engines to set up outside the contest and rush the ball forward with great speed and long-range kicking.
The future also looks bright with Jeremy Sharp and Jez McLennan having strong futures with their foot skills.
Wil Powell has developed a nice two-way game in defence, while Jy Farrar is playing a good role as a third tall defender while Sam Collins and Charlie Ballard do their thing.
With the firm belief that Ballard could be one of the best interceptors in the league, letting Graham develop his defensive skills would push each defender a rung down the accountability ladder.
Right now, once each player has the ball, their focus is looking sideways or incrementally forward. On average, Gold Coast’s opposition are gaining 225 more metres than the Suns in each game, which ranks the club 15th. Ultimately, the Suns need a purpose when setting up the defensively and strength in numbers and tackling should be able to free up the good users in the defensive half to focus on getting the ball forward.
Which leads to one final suggestion for a major change Gold Coast should look to implement in 2021.
The name Jack Lukosius was omitted above because it’s time the Gold Coast Suns unleashed their “generational talent” as their centre half-forward and create the best key forward duo in the competition.
Already, Lukosius has been moved up to the wing more in 2021, averaging 4.3 inside 50s, four rebound 50s and is one of the league’s leaders in metres gained.
Having him higher up the ground means Gold Coast can capitalise on the rebounding abilities of existing talent.
(Photo by Chris Hyde/Getty Images)
Truthfully, Lukosius wasn’t really an intercept marker and was a liability on the defensive end anyway, so it’s clear that getting him out of there was necessary.
But now that Atkins is in the team with Ellis and Lachie Weller, along with the soon-to-be return of Matt Rowell to help push Noah Anderson out a little, the Suns will have plenty of presence on the wing.
Gold Coast simply have to play Lukosius in attack.
Likened to Nick Riewoldt for his incredible work ethic and leading patterns, this move opens up many options.
The football intelligence and understanding of the game at Lukosius’ disposal, evidenced by the kicks he is willing to take on, must be maximised offensively.
With King the dominant player closer to goal, Lukosius as a key forward opens up the entire 50 behind him, which decongests the forward line and creates space. Lukosius can kick for goal from anywhere within 60 metres and will attract a traditional centre halfback, who won’t be able to keep up with the third-year player from a fitness perspective.
We’ve already seen in the first nine games that Lukosius has already doubled his score involvement numbers to five per game and having over a shot on goal per game and that’s from a wing.
Just imagine how high his numbers will get if he is the main concern of the opposition’s defence, thus creating free opportunities for teammates.
Gold Coast have great depth on the flanks and wing areas, and without offensive inspiration in 2021, there is no better time than the present to pull the trigger and create their future forward line.
Overall, there is a sense of inevitability as to how the year will play out for the Suns, which is an indictment on any football club.
But in making a few simple moves, the Suns can switch the narrative and change the immediate outlook to one that is far more positive.
We know that the club has a good defensive setup, but the most successful teams in the AFL are extremely efficient at both ends. Switching Lukosius forward and focusing on gaining yardage by foot may seem simple enough, but they are moves and mindsets that have to be considered for this season to be a success.
2021 isn’t a year to be wasted and plenty can still come out of it.
The Gold Coast Suns just need to be willing to adjust.
Seano
Roar Rookie
The Giants worked because of Chocco, The demons are finally working because of Chocco. The AFL should give him a 5 year deal as senior assistant to Dew, they would work it out together. Chooco can fix the talent.
Seymorebutts
Guest
Im a bit on the fence about a third WA team. As it stands, there is a natural divide between Fremantle and Perth, different cities, different cultures, north and south, Fremantle had two teams in the WAFL, East Fremantle and South Fremantle.. so there was a pre existing rivalry which didnt need any artificial promotion. Where will the third club be based? I would be guessing up at Joondalup... merging with the old West Perth / Joondalup Falcons... or Wanneroo?? They would train at Quins Rock and play at Optus?? Then the AFL have to create a fake 'rivalry'' the way they try and promote North Melbourne / Essendon games.. crikey, those clubs were rivals for barely three years over 20 years ago. If they want a third team, they really should embrace the south west and base the side in either Bunbury or Busselton. I cant remember which one is bigger, but they would pull bigger crowds than the Suns and GWS combined, you have the Perth metro / city slickers- South west regional / country bumpkins/ hillbillys rivalry happening..... home games down there would be a big event, people would come in from surrounding areas to spend the weekend in town. So if the third license goes to one of those thriving south western towns, which is part of a thriving pre existing footy community, then sure I'd go for it. Otherwise you will end up with a team like Leyton Orient... a professional English soccer team in London that located near West Ham United, that most people have never heard off. They play games, get a small crowd, all their talent ends up going to the other big clubs and they are perennially in the third division.
kooj
Roar Rookie
Freo's record is poor but they are far from alone as far as not winning premierships goes. You could add Melbourne and St Kilda to any discussion on lack of generational success. As you've mentioned, its so hard to win a flag, at least Freo belatedly played finals by their 9th year and managed to get to GF and a minor premiership. Where the heartland bit is relevant is the fact that 25 years later, Dockers fans are still turning up. Was a miserable night in Perth on Saturday (Sandgropers have an aversion to leaving the McMansion in Winter) and 29k still paid their hard earned to watch them play Sydney, coming off that disappointing loss to the Bombers the week before. If the Gold Coast don't get a bit more traction / success, I'm not sure who will be turning up 5-10 years time.
RT
Roar Rookie
Whether or not Geelong borrowed money for it is their business. Richmond, through its members have still contributed to stadium development just as Geelong has (through its future members or sponsors). Other clubs in the past have developed their grounds, those grounds just aren't used anymore, as I said before. Don't tell me Princess Park built all those stands on local rates.
Cat
Roar Guru
A levy is not the same thing at all. A levy is pay as you go. No capital needed. A club doesn’t have to go to a bank and go in debt for a levy. They just make a bit less as they go
RT
Roar Rookie
Simply wrong as I have pointed out before. There used to be a levy on my Richmond membership and other MCG tenants to pay for the MCG redevelopment. Effectively the same thing. Plus in years gone by I am sure other clubs paid to upgrade their grounds, the ones no longer in use.
Thom Roker
Roar Guru
Now you're just making things up as you go along. Southport Sharks paid $10 million to float the GC17 franchise. How much more money do you want them to invest? They could, but then the AFL would have to give them the club. It's a different business model. The Suns also agreed to vacate the stadium while the Commonwealth Games were going, so there's some more money they've put into the stadium. By the end of the lease the Suns will have paid for plenty, don't you worry about that.
Cat
Roar Guru
They didn’t pay to build it. Didn’t pay to renovate it. AFL and taxpayers did.
Thom Roker
Roar Guru
The Suns also pay for their venue. The lease agreement is halfway through its first 20 years, after which the AFL will likely revert ownership rights to the GCFC. "The Gold Coast Suns The new stadium was funded by the AFL ($13.3 million), the Queensland Government ($71.9 million), the Commonwealth Government ($36 million) and the Gold Coast City Council ($23 million). The AFL pursued the construction of the facility to provide a venue for a Gold Coast AFL franchise. In 2011, the AFL and the Queensland Government signed a Memorandum of Understanding which handed the lease of Carrara Stadium to the AFL for 20 years, and transfers all operating, maintenance and asset renewal responsibilities of the venue to the AFL in exchange for a peppercorn rent. In turn, the Gold Coast Suns have a Venue Management Arrangement which has been signed with the AFL, to which Stadiums Queensland is not a party – the AFL have passed on the responsibility for paying venue costs to the Gold Coast Suns through the terms of their management agreement to operate the venue. All profits remain with the AFL and Suns, except where Stadiums Queensland is responsible for bringing an event to the venue, where a profit share is retained." http://www.footyindustry.com/?page_id=2668#:~:text=The%20new%20stadium%20was%20funded,a%20Gold%20Coast%20AFL%20franchise.
Cat
Roar Guru
Please show me where I’ve complained about GCFC. I’ll wait … Stk getting extra year after year … that I complain about.
Thom Roker
Roar Guru
The AFL Commission rejects most of what is tabled before it, but they can't ignore something once it has been determined that it is worthy of consideration. They aren't doing anything right now about Tassie or NT except letting Tassie's U19s to play the entire season in the NAB League while NT Thunder's U19s have 2 games and possibly some more rep footy later in the season. The AFL was supposed to admit a Tasmanian side in the VFL this year but merged with the NEAFL instead. If anything, expansion has been put on the backburner and regions are being ignored. ACT, NT, Redland and Sydney had teams in the NEAFL in 2019, but they've dropped back to State League. A third WA team could come in from 2022 and have capacity crowds right away. Come to mention it, 3 WA teams, 3 SA teams, 2 QLD, 2 NSW, and 7 Vic + 1 Tasmania could be the right mix.
Thom Roker
Roar Guru
You are very tedious for a fan of a team that is always competing for Grand Finals. Your team has enjoyed long term success due to having built a community club over decades. You are privileged, yet you cannot see it. The Gold Coast got a team in 1987, but the VFL couldn't have screwed it up worse and the Bears went to the Gabba and a town where they would get half a million supporters. The Gold Coast community has invested in having an AFL team twice now and you begrudge the equalisation funding. Talk about a tight sphincter! Your club has everything it could ever want, yet all you can do is whine about a struggling club getting chickenfeed of $10.6 million less than pre-Covid levels. Wake up!
AdamDilligafThompson
Roar Rookie
I wish they'd just keep thins the same, the flags keep getting moved every year as itis just with rule changes let alone changing the whole finals system. That could just be me though being a creature of habit as well.lol.
Thom Roker
Roar Guru
There's a credible solution tabled at the AFL Commission for 17 game season where the bottom 6 teams are eliminated from finals and just play each other again, then the middle 6 play off for the final 2 spots in the top 8 and the top 6 teams play each other to decide the finals order. You'd need an incentive for bottom teams not to tank and there is also an alternative where there's a wildcard round in place of finals bye where 4 teams play off for 7th and 8th. Relegation would be a good alternative in this system as the incentive for not coming last.
AdamDilligafThompson
Roar Rookie
Agree man. I think they'd have to relocate two teams, 20 would be way to many, unless of course all they think about is the dollars involved. Don't know if they'd be able to sell to teams relocating and keeping all the current supporters plus being able to attract local supporters as well but surely that would be the better option but I guess we wait and see, technically I think they need to make sure GWS and Gold Coast are well established and have things sorted properly before they bring in two more whether its a merge or new teams. Thats the other thing with two new teams as well, the drain on the player/talent pool nationally would be huge.
Thom Roker
Roar Guru
If Tasmania and Darwin are to get a shot at an AFL franchise they've got two alternatives. The first is to relocate a Melbourne team. For argument's sake, the Kangaroos to Tasmania is an obvious one given the club currently has so many links to Tasmania. But if either was to be a stand alone they will need to compete in the VFL first for a number of years and be viable. They will also need strong academies and in Darwin's case the pipeline will need to be closed off for other clubs to raid the best NT talent all the time. I'm more in favour of Melbourne franchises being shifted because 18 teams is the best number. St Kilda or Melbourne would be in line to go to the NT. You wouldn't do it in one fell swoop, but over a few seasons in order to attract a playing list that wants to be there and there would need to be concessions to make that work. I also couldn't see a team playing 11 home games in Darwin, so spreading games across the region such as Alice Springs and Cairns, while guaranteeing a minimum 10 games in Melbourne for their fans to attend. Even easier for North to do given they already play so many games in Hobart and Launceston.
AdamDilligafThompson
Roar Rookie
Thats what i more meant as well man, its on the AFL rather then the suns or gws themselves, they should of had better support etc when they came in. %100 as well, it was bad enough that technically it should average a premiership for each team every 16years, now thats out to 18years and theres talk of it going to 20years. So if your team doe's everything right and thats a big if, roughly on average you've got a shot at 3 or 4 premierships in a life time. Imagine the length of stretches teams could go without a gf or premiership now or when/if there's 20 teams.lol.
Thom Roker
Roar Guru
The better model might have been to have a promotion and demotion league. IMO that would have seen a 12 team league getting similar results to the current comp, but a better top end result. That’s fine if you are happy with a comp that never has any sort of chance for success for the Dockers or Suns yet gives some sort of fleeting glory for Port Melbourne or Southport. But they went with expansion and seemingly a model where the Suns are eternally rubbish. Seriously, the club is run by the AFL!!!! They run it and they have purposely run it dead.
AdamDilligafThompson
Roar Rookie
No doubting why they did it as i said, but was still a huge risk and especially at that time with the amount of money thats been put in. I hope it works out, like i said I dont hold any hard feelings towards gc or gws personally at all, i think personally there's probs too many clubs, so an expansion to 20 teams if it happens is too much i think but we'll wait and see i guess.
Thom Roker
Roar Guru
The AFL had an opportunity to increase their broadcast deal by 9%. That’s enough to pay for two teams. The number of players being drafted out of Queensland, not to mention how strong women’s footy has become where they had to bring in the Sun AFLW ahead of schedule (work to do there, but finals first year), means the sport has a much bigger footprint. It’s anecdotal, but I had mates over last night who are mad NRL fans and they wanted to watch AFL because the Lions are going so well. My NRL team was playing, then my brother’s played and we didn’t watch any of it because ???? vs ???? was such a good game. 10 years ago they’d have taken the remote and refused to watch a second of AFL.