GOLD COAST was one of the clubs who did not want the season to finish.
After a year of striking ups and downs, often within games, the Suns produced their best performance of the season in what turned out to be their last official match when they thrashed Aspley by 78 points at Graham Rd, a day that saw Northern Territory zone selections Joel Jeffrey (nine goals) and Mal Rosas (30 disposals) come of age.
That day also saw top draft pick Elijah Hollands enjoy the best game of his three-match return from a knee reconstruction with 27 touches as he showed the club’s faith to take him in the top 10 despite his injury was likely to be repaid.
Gold Coast’s other three wins showed a resilience that will stand it in good stead – it overhauled 23 and 38-point deficits to beat Sydney twice and hauled itself out of a 41-point hole to down the Hornets.
Those results provided first-year coach Tate Kaesler with some areas to improve, but also confidence they were on the right track. Fixing those slow starts will also go a long way to fixing a worrying percentage of 76.88 – a long way below the 13 clubs who finished above them.
"It was interesting the way it all panned out but we learned some lessons early around what is required at the level and getting our guys to understand the quality of the competition we were coming up against every week," Kaesler said.
"I think our last couple of games were probably our best for the year, coming back from 41 points down at half-time, that was really good.
"Obviously you don't want to be in that position at half-time, but it showed some really good fight and the character of those boys.
"Those come-from-behind wins were quite good for the club in terms of building belief and understanding that you're never out of it – if we play the way we want to play we're always in the game.
"I thought by the mid to back end of the year we really started to play some good, consistent footy, so it was a shame the year ended how it did because I thought we were coming into our best form."
In reality there were only two bad results for the Suns – they lost consecutive games to Brisbane Lions (by 60 points) and Southport (83) under the Thursday and Friday night spotlights, with their other defeats being a convincing away loss to unbeaten Footscray (not Robinson Crusoe there), a thrilling near miss away to Collingwood and falling to Box Hill and Greater Western Sydney when their team was decimated by COVID exclusions in Melbourne.
"(The Box Hill) game, we had 10 listed players and we had to find 12, so we put that over to our recruiting guy, Kall Burns, and he got on the phone and did a lot of work.
"We were really grateful to (Werribee and the NAB League) clubs to be able to offer up a few players to help us out – that was quite challenging because we were only introduced to those guys the day before the game … but it was another learning opportunity for our listed guys to be able to practice their leadership and organisation, lead from the front and make them feel welcome."
Kaesler praised the professionalism of his senior players in keeping things together when COVID restrictions were doing their best to pull them apart, and at the same time bringing a talented young group together on the field.
"The people running (the VFL) did a really good job under challenging circumstances, we'd all obviously love to play more games and compete every week for four points, but we've had to adapt to the current environment and potentially what is ahead of us. One thing building a lot of resilience is to be able to adapt each week," he said.
"Jarrod Harbrow, Jack Hombsch, Jordan Murdoch, Jacob Townsend – these guys were absolutely fantastic in terms of creating the environment and the standard that is required to play at AFL level.
"That sort of stuff goes unnoticed a bit, but they really drove the standard at VFL level and it was really important for them to keep their connection with the younger guys."
With a number of those senior players retiring, Gold Coast will be looking for that younger group to take the next step and Kaesler is confident he has the cattle to do so.
"It's not too often you get guys with that much experience playing at VFL level and they were pivotal in us becoming a really good side at the back end of the year as well," he said.
"They were the main guys but we gave opportunities to guys like Jez McLennan or Jy Farrer to captain the side on occasions and lead the group, and they really stood out.
"There are a lot of guys who are going to continue to develop in that over time, the likes of Alex Davies who are a little bit shy but have the potential to develop into leaders of the team, so we always want to give them the opportunity to lead."
The Suns' midfield was a key factor in keeping them competitive throughout the season and Kaesler said a highlight for him was seeing those players rewarded with AFL games, as well as helping others such as Ben Ainsworth and Josh Corbett rediscover their form.
"We had three guys who started in the VFL get to debut in the AFL this year, which was really pleasing, and we were able to get a few guys back from the AFL to work on a few things and they were able to get back into the AFL and play good footy," he said.
"Those guys (Brayden Fiorini, Darcy MacPherson, Will Brodie) are the perfect example, and Jeremy Sharp was another one who had eight or so weeks in the VFL and was really consistent and ended up playing out the year at AFL level.
"We were able to blood Mal Rosas, Joel Jeffrey and Alex Davies in the AFL as well, which was great for the club to be able to see these guys at the next level."
4-6 win-loss, 14th
What went right: The Suns showed a never-say-die attitude in several matches, with the come-from-behind wins over Sydney (twice) and Aspley giving them confidence in their ability. They really exploded in the last game against the Hornets, with Joel Jeffrey blasting his way into the AFL team with nine goals. The rookies got no end of benefit from having experienced players to help all over the ground.
What went wrong: Like most clubs, the shortened season cost them extra chances to develop their younger players, especially those from the Academy who are striving to get on the AFL list. The Suns also rued not getting more opportunities to play Victorian opposition.
Best and fairest prediction: Will Brodie is the favourite after enjoying an outstanding season without breaking into the AFL team as much as he would like. Darcy MacPherson and Brayden Fiorini are the dangers, but they played two and three games less than Brodie due to AFL selection.
Best young players: No.7 pick Elijah Hollands and NT zone selection Alex Davies look like they could be everything the Suns hope them to be, while Davies’ fellow Territorian Jeffrey kicked an excellent 21.8 in nine games in his debut season. Malcolm Rosas also impressed while unlisted Academy prospects Bailey Reeves, Jack Johnston and Bodhi Uwland also look to have good futures.
Coach status: Tate Kaesler is contracted for a second season while also looking after defence for the AFL team. "We've obviously got to weigh up how the season panned out but I really enjoyed the role, the management and leadership side of it, that helped me grow as a coach and I'd really like to do it again next year if that’s the way the club wants to continue to go."
Twitter: @BRhodesVFL
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