WHEN Gary Ablett jnr was at Gold Coast, he was the most driven player in the game; now the two-time Brownlow Medal winner is too nervous to watch his former club play its first finals campaign.

Ablett jnr spent seven seasons at Carrara in the middle of his stellar career, helping to launch the fledgling club from 2011 to 2017.

Arguably the best player of this century, Ablett jnr was at the peak of his power when at the Suns, winning the 2013 Brownlow and almost certainly on the way to another the following season before famously popping his shoulder against Collingwood.

Gold Coast's current general manager of commercial and consumer, Andrew Thomas, shared a story with AFL.com.au about the drive behind the midfield wizard.

"I walked past the players' lockers when we were based in the demountables … and I see the No.9 and he'd left the door open," Thomas recalled.

"There was a note, just on a piece of A4 paper, 'Did you work harder than Chris Judd today?'

"It showed his mentality. I thought at the time it was a really good message that all of us could learn from. It's always stuck with me."

Ablett jnr left the Suns at the end of 2017 to return to Geelong where he played the final four seasons of his illustrious career.

On Tuesday he returned to People First Stadium as an ambassador for the Premiership Cup as it tours the country.

Ablett jnr was asked what he thought about Gold Coast's historic win over Fremantle on Saturday night and said he could not bear to watch the final term.

"I was very nervous," he said. "I actually turned the game off at three-quarter time. I couldn't watch the last quarter."

Ablett jnr headed to bed, but decided to check the final score on his phone before nodding off.

"I jumped on the AFL website and tried to find the video of the last two minutes," he said.

"To see Dave (Swallow) had kicked the winning point was the perfect way to finish their first final. I messaged him during the week to congratulate him."

Now, the club's inaugural captain thinks his former team has the tools to do further damage in September.

"The ultimate goal is to win a premiership, and I think they've got the list to do that. When the Suns play at their best, they can beat anyone," he said.