YOUNG Gold Coast leader Touk Miller says he's baffled by the Suns' inconsistent form and concedes there's a part of coach Rodney Eade's message not getting through.
The Suns had "rolled over" against Melbourne on Saturday, Miller said, giving up a 30-point lead during the third quarter and losing by 35 points.
It followed a horror performance against Port Adelaide in China where the listless Suns were flogged by 12 goals.
Miller said Monday's review was difficult to watch.
"It was probably a bit more uncomfortable the fact we were winning and then we just rolled over," he said.
"Our effort in the third quarter and last quarter was lacking.
"We didn't show up when the game was on the line, which was really disappointing.
"We were a bit rattled that it blew out to 35 points, it probably stumped us a bit.
"It reflects what our season's been like, we've been really good and then we've been really bad."
Following the defeat Eade said the club's 3-6 record – and the nature of some of the losses – highlighted that sometimes his message wasn't sinking in.
"I guess that's what baffles him the most … we seem to play really good football, the weekend being a good example, and then we just let it slip," Miller said.
"It's that 10 per cent that doesn't sink in, and we might miss a few structural things or we're not able to adapt to a game quicker enough.
"That's what's costing us.
"It's something we have to learn and we have to learn quicker than we have been."
While Melbourne's leaders took control through an inspiring third quarter by Nathan Jones and a cool head from Jordan Lewis, the Suns' leaders struggled to turn the tide.
Miller said they had to be more proactive rather than waiting for breaks in play to address the problems.
"The fact we're so inconsistent is what's rattling us at the moment," he said.
"You go from a 100-point loss to a win over a top-four team, (it) baffles everyone.
"That's something we're trying to bridge.
"If we've lost three centre bounces back to back, or they've kicked two or three goals, what are we going to do in that five minutes rather than waiting until the quarter break when we're six or seven goals down?
"It's something we have to improve."
