The Gold Coast Suns have to prove that they have more character and resilience than they showed in season 2021, where they finished 16th.
The fact that eight of their 15 losses were by 50 points or more in season 2021, which is more than half of the games that they lost, shows that they weren’t at the races for a larger portion of the season.
That makes it clear and obvious that it’s inconceivable that the Suns aim should be even in the conversation when it comes to which teams can make finals in season 2022.
There’s no doubt that the Suns must improve their performances. Granted, they did have Jarrod Witts out through injury for the entirety of 2021 and they missed his leadership. They did manage to win seven games in 2021, but they need to show more vigour and character in season 2022. Their list may be the fourth youngest, but they need to be competitive to build up a sustainable following and brand.
Sam Collins was a revelation for the Suns in season 2021. At times, he played for two players. He played with plenty of endeavour and never gave up even when the game was effectively over from a scoreboard perspective.
Collins’ never-say-die attitude should be contagious in season 2022. He is a key defender of high quality. The three games that he missed were in Round 13, Round 14 and Round 15. In Round 15 they lost to the wooden spooners; he should play every game when available for selection.
Despite missing three games and being omitted from the Suns team, Collins finished fourth in their best and fairest in season 2021 and averaged the most intercepts of any Suns player with an average of 7.00 per game.
Ben King had the highest average goals per game of any Suns player in season 2021 with an average of 2.14 goals per game. He needs to build on that, as it didn’t impact the manner in which he was rated within the club; he finished outside of the top ten in the Suns best and fairest. He failed to kick a goal on seven occasions; unacceptable for a player of his calibre.
Ben King (Photo by Graham Denholm/AFL Photos via Getty Images)
King averaged the fourth highest contested marks of any Suns player, which is simply not good enough for a player of his ability, with an average of 1.09 contested marks per game. That’s why at times his body language can appear to be laconic.
He needs to provide a contest for the other players to benefit from and draw defenders to him, in order for his talent to come to fruition in season 2022.
Touk Miller had an outstanding season 2021. He was extremely consistent and needs to replicate his consistency, as he will play a key role in how the Suns’ season goes in 2022. To be chosen in the AFL All Australian team in 2021 shows what an impact he had and the part he played in the Suns avoiding the dreaded wooden spoon.
Miller’s stats were prolific; they speak for themselves, but he had the second highest average tackles of any Suns player in season 2021 with 7.10 tackles per game, as Hugh Greenwood had the highest average tackles of any Suns player with an average of 8.60 tackles per game. It’s a key indicator that even though Miller was outstanding he has room for improvement, as Hugh Greenwood will be a big loss for the Suns.
The one game that Miller missed was in Round 9 through suspension, the Suns lost by 73 points to the Brisbane Lions. That’s an indication that he was a bit of a barometer for the Suns.
He averaged the fifth most disposals of anyone in the AFL with an average of 31.81 and had at least 20 disposals or more in each of his games. Along with that, he averaged the second most metres gained of any Suns player with an average of 417.90 metres, which is impressive for a midfielder.
Miller doesn’t need to have the captaincy as he leads by example. He is the player who other teams could look to tag, which should give an opportunity for the likes of Matt Rowell and Noah Anderson to benefit from.
Jack Lukosius is a utility and capable of filing a number of roles when called upon. As a matter of fact, he could be used anywhere from centre half back to centre half forward, on the wing or as a second ruck. He has so much potential to plug the gaps that the Suns have.
The fact that he finished tenth in the Suns best and fairest in season 2021 indicates that he needs to improve, given that he didn’t miss a game. He did manage to average an impressive 20.09 disposals per game. He has to contribute more to the team – if he does, the sun will shine on the Suns!
Chris M
Guest
I think I only watched one Suns' game on TV last season. I therefore comment without feeling that level of spectating will qualify me to confidently choose four players. Sam Collins seems a reasonable choice for your first since defence is an important a role as any, especially a quality key defender. St Kilda's Max King seems to carry more favour with the press than his twin brother, Ben, your second choice, but Ben finished higher in the Coleman Medal tally. I'm sure he will be keen to replicate that ascendancy in 2022. He's doing well for his age. Hopefully the coaching and playing environment at Gold Coast will eliminate any complacency about where he has room for improvement. Your third choice, Touk Miller, won all-Australian honours in 2021. In all likelihood, if he remains injury-free he will at least play at around the same standard in 2022, if not further improve on last season. Therefore my third choice would have been Matt Rowell, because the Suns would want to see him once more find the 'Brownlow' form that he showed in his first few games before injuries curtailed his progress. I can understand Jack Lukosius being your fourth selection. Even if he is already considered a talented player, Lukosius was described by some observers at the time of the draft as a once-in-a-generation talent. While players can be over-hyped with the term, 'once-in-a-generation,' I think Gold Coast would like him to show just that so that it can benefit the club's win-loss record. If he decides not to extend his contract, obviously the better he plays, the more that Gold Coast can request in exchange for his suitors. The same would apply to Ben King.
George13
Guest
I got the same 4 players. Missing Witts with other ruck backups for most of the season was a killer for Suns in 2021. Suns did not have a solution for it. I agree some losses were bad and percentage was no good. As for Collins, there is a reason why they call him sergeant. He’s a great leader and organiser. Collins was not omitted. Collins was injured. IMO, Collins had an ordinary season hampered by foot problem. Collins missed large chunk of pre-season because of it and struggled wit it during the season and had a surgery after the season. Collins lacked fitness and some performances like against Crows (Walker) and Swans (Buddy) were poor. IMO, Ballard was a better KPD for Suns in 2021. Yes, King needs to improve his contest. Working hard on his body this off-season so I would expect again incremental improvement. People seem to forget that King was played as a solitary KPF for Suns for most of the season due to Day injuries. Also Suns inside 50 deliveries were poor due to midfield issues stemming from no ruck. As a result, oppositions were able to focus on him quite easily. In 2022, King will get some help. Besides Day, Lukosius is finally moving forward and Chol also joined the Suns. King carried ribs injury in the second half of the season. I agree, I did not like his body language in some games in the second half of the season and would like to see desperation/effort from him all the time. Not sure, I would claim that Miller still has room for improvement just because he averaged 1 less tackle than Greenwood. I would be hard to press to find another player in AFL better in two ways gut running. Miller work rate is enormous. If anything, Miller could still improve his decision making, kick but he improved in that aspect as season progressed. If anything, I could foresee Miller to improve further as young midfielders around him improve and make life easier for him. Yes, I would still like to have Greenwood with Suns for at least one more year, but I am not sure that Greenwood will be a big loss for Suns. In two best wins against Richmond and GWS and in the win against Blues Greenwood did not play or was injured early (GWS). Great in tackles, contest but bad/average in disposals, speed, defending. It opened opportunity for other players. Mainly Fiorini who did well when he replaced Greenwood and Bowes who now trains with midfield. Davies will get some games too.