ALMOST two years after his "life-changing" injury, Christian Petracca has reminded everybody – including himself – he could again be one of the best players in the AFL.

Petracca was magnificent in Gold Coast's 56-point thumping of Geelong on Friday night, showing all the power and poise that made him a four-time All-Australian at Melbourne.

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Not only did we see his trademark bulldozing contested ball-winning, but Petracca showed off some precise field kicking that helped him to three goals and four score assists from 34 disposals.

In his first outing for the Suns since moving from Melbourne during the off-season, it was almost the complete game.

Speaking to reporters following the match, Petracca said he had doubted he could get back to that level following the horrific collision with Darcy Moore on King's Birthday in 2024 that left him with broken ribs, a punctured lung and surgery that threatened his life.

"That's what happens when you're an athlete, you always doubt yourself at some point," he said.

"There is a lot of criticism and self-doubt, more internally than externally."

Petracca said the incident with Moore, that left him in ICU for five days, was never far from his thoughts.

"It's always there, no doubt. It was a life-changing moment for me," he said.

"It's crazy how life-altering moments can change the trajectory of life. It's pretty amazing in that sense.

"It's always going to be there. It's part of my identity and part of my journey. 

"I'm super grateful to have played every game last year, and I took a lot of confidence out of that.

"Sometimes only you and your family and your friends know what you've gone through, so I'm just incredibly grateful to be playing footy and just doing what I love."

Gold Coast coach Damien Hardwick was all smiles when asked about his boom recruit's huge impact.

"It was great, wasn't it?" he said.

"His ability to win the ball forward of centre, use the ball well forward of centre is exactly the reason we wanted to bring him to our football club. 

"It's the start of a long period for him here and he's only going to get better I think once he starts to establish himself with the chemistry within our group. 

"I love what he brings, I love the energy he brings. 

"It's going to be a good year hopefully for him."