In music and literature the word ‘Sun’ evokes happiness, growth and good health, but in the AFL it implies all the opposites.
Things are bleak on the Gold Coast and it’s hard to see any light at the end of the tunnel; if finishing one rung above the wooden spoon wasn’t bad enough the Suns have endured a post-season from hell as their two co-captains and a few others departed for, ironically, sunnier shores.
The floundering franchise has been forced to change tack, approaching the trade period with a determination to find experienced footballers of strong character who will give their all and not just look at the club as a temporary home.
It’s going to take more than a coat of paint to convince the top youngsters taken in the draft that Gold Coast is a place to start a family, but great empires are built on adversity and if Stuart Dew can get a few more wins on the board there’s hope, and that’s not a bad thing.
After all, what doesn’t kill us only makes us stronger - and Gill McLachlan isn’t going to let anything kill the Suns.
List changes
In
Corey Ellis (Richmond), Anthony Miles (Richmond), George Horlin-Smith (Geelong), Jack Hombsch (Port Adelaide), Jack Lukosius (Woodville West Torrens), Izak Rankine (West Torrens), Ben King (Sandringham Dragons), Jez McLennan (Central District), Caleb Graham (Gold Coast Academy)
Out
Aaron Hall, Kade Kolodashnij, Tom Lynch, Steven May, Jack Scrimshaw
Best Brownlow chances
Lachie Weller $501, Aaron Young $501
You have to go deep down the Brownlow odds to find a Gold Coast player, and while many punters love the lure of a longshot, there are better ways to blow a buck than put it on a Sun.
Tom Lynch was the club’s equal-leading vote winner in 2018 despite playing less than half the season and is now gone. If you really do think a miracle may happen, put your money on Brayden Fiorini. He shared the lead with Lynch and, unlike some of his teammates, has room for improvement.
Players to watch
Jack Lukosius, Anthony Miles
Gold Coast had a few strategies available to it at the draft and went with the South Australian option, selecting Lukosius and Izak Rankine with picks 2 and 3. Lukosius will be burdened from the outset with the job of shining as the Suns’ great forward hope of the future, all the while being courted backstage by every other club in the competition.
Of all the experienced players Gold Coast brought in, Miles is the one most will expect to have an immediate impact. He knows how to get the ball and is determined to show he’s able to match it with the best. Miles may not rack up the Brownlow votes but expect the former Tiger to be the most popular fantasy football team member around the country.
A last chance to watch?
Michael Rischitelli, Pearce Hanley
That’s right, Rischitelli’s not gone yet despite Channel 7 giving him a send off at this year’s Brownlow broadcast, but he has been moved to the rookie list which is no longer a sign of a long and prosperous on-field future. The Brisbane best and fairest winner is heading into season 16 knowing that a 17th is extremely unlikely.
Michael Rischitelli sent us a message. 😂 pic.twitter.com/wlRWICvnpi
— 7AFL (@7AFL) September 24, 2018
‘Risky’s former Lions teammate Hanley is probably already looking at property back in Ireland for a 2020 move. The once-durable but now injury-plagued 30-year-old hasn’t been able to string together more than half a dozen consecutive games since moving to Metricon and the frustration is clear. Hanley is out of contract at the end of 2019 and, even if his body holds up, the challenge to keep his head and heart in the game may prove too much to go on.
Gold Coast Suns’ 2019 list
| No. | Name | Games | Date of birth | Height, weight | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13 | Ah Chee, Callum | 44 | 9 Oct 1997 | 182cm 71kg | Forward |
| 9 | Ainsworth, Ben | 29 | 10 Feb 1998 | 178cm 76kg | Forward |
| 31 | Ballard, Charlie | 11 | 23 Jul 1999 | 196cm 82kg | Midfield |
| 29 | Bowes, Jack | 27 | 26 Jan 1998 | 187cm 78kg | Defender |
| 7 | Brodie, Will | 11 | 23 Aug 1998 | 189cm 82kg | Midfield |
| 29 | Burgess, Chris | 0 | |||
| 25 | Collins, Sam | 14 | 15 Jun 1994 | 194cm 97kg | Defender |
| 19 | Corbett, Josh | 0 | |||
| 32 | Crossley, Brayden | 10 | 16 Aug 1999 | 198cm 101kg | Ruck |
| 45 | Dawson, Jacob (R) | 3 | 3 Nov 1999 | 182cm 80kg | Midfield |
| 12 | Day, Sam | 110 | 6 Sep 1992 | 197cm 102kg | Forward |
| 17 | Ellis, Corey | 27 | 9 Oct 1996 | 184cm 80kg | Midfield |
| 8 | Fiorini, Brayden | 26 | 22 Aug 1997 | 186cm 75kg | Midfield |
| 46 | Graham, Caleb | 0 | 195cm 92kg | Forward | |
| 1 | Hanley, Pearce | 145 | 15 Nov 1988 | 185cm 85kg | Defender |
| 5 | Harbrow, Jarrod | 224 | 18 Jul 1988 | 178cm 73kg | Defender |
| 40 | Heron, Jacob (R) | 8 | 10 Dec 1999 | 180cm 75kg | Defender |
| 39 | Holman, Nicholas (R) | 22 | 29 May 1995 | 187cm 84kg | Midfield |
| 20 | Hombsch, Jack | 98 | 7 Mar 1993 | 194cm 90kg | Defender |
| 33 | Horlin-Smith, George | 51 | 22 Dec 1992 | 188cm 84kg | Midfield |
| 38 | Joyce, Jesse | 47 | 17 Aug 1997 | 191cm 90kg | Defender |
| 34 | King, Ben | 0 | 202cm 87kg | Defender | |
| 23 | Lemmens, Sean | 79 | 2 Nov 1994 | 184cm 74kg | Forward |
| 21 | Leslie, Jack (R) | 28 | 27 Apr 1995 | 197cm 98kg | Defender |
| 41 | Lukosius, Jack | 0 | 195cm 83kg | Forward | |
| 44 | Macpherson, Darcy (R) | 17 | 29 Oct 1997 | 174cm 72kg | Forward |
| 4 | Martin, Jack | 81 | 29 Jan 1995 | 186cm 79kg | Forward |
| 54 | McLennan, Jez | 0 | 185cm 81kg | Defender | |
| 2 | Miles, Anthony | 71 | 28 Feb 1992 | 180cm 80kg | Midfield |
| 11 | Miller, Touk | 82 | 22 Feb 1996 | 178cm 81kg | Midfield |
| 31 | Murdoch, Jordan | 108 | 23 Mar 1992 | 190cm 87kg | Forward |
| 22 | Nicholls, Tom | 45 | 4 Mar 1992 | 203cm 102kg | Ruck |
| 42 | Nutting, Connor | 0 | 9 Oct 1999 | 187cm 80kg | Defender |
| 27 | Powell, Wil | 7 | 26 Aug 1999 | 184cm 65kg | Forward |
| 37 | Rankine, Izak | 0 | 179cm 79kg | Midfield | |
| 35 | Rischitelli, Michael (R) | 236 | 8 Jan 1986 | 185cm 84kg | Defender |
| Scheer, Bradley (R) | 0 | ||||
| 36 | Schoenfeld, Joshua | 14 | 3 Jul 1997 | 186cm 75kg | Midfield |
| 6 | Sexton, Alex | 97 | 3 Dec 1993 | 186cm 82kg | Forward |
| 24 | Swallow, David | 117 | 19 Nov 1992 | 185cm 86kg | Midfield |
| 16 | Thompson, Rory | 103 | 12 Mar 1991 | 200cm 100kg | Defender |
| 14 | Weller, Lachlan | 69 | 23 Feb 1996 | 181cm 79kg | Midfield |
| 26 | Wigg, Harrison (R) | 0 | 16 Oct 1996 | 180cm 78kg | Midfield |
| 28 | Witts, Jarrod | 80 | 13 Sep 1992 | 209cm 111kg | Ruck |
| 30 | Wright, Peter | 49 | 8 Sep 1996 | 203cm 100kg | Forward |
| 15 | Young, Aaron | 98 | 6 Dec 1992 | 189cm 83kg | Forward |
Ben King is asked his High School ATAR result in front of the boys during the New Zealand camp 👨🎓 pic.twitter.com/cX6hdIlkvJ
— Gold Coast Suns (@GoldCoastSUNS) December 16, 2018
Gold Coast Suns’ 2019 Fixture
| Round | Date | Opponent | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sunday 24 Mar 1:10pm | St Kilda | Marvel Stadium |
| 2 | Sunday 31 Mar 3:40pm | Fremantle | Metricon Stadium |
| 3 | Sunday 7 Apr 2:20pm | Western Bulldogs | Marvel Stadium |
| 4 | Sunday 14 Apr 2:40pm | Carlton | Metricon Stadium |
| 5 | Sunday 21 Apr 4:10pm | Adelaide | Adelaide Oval |
| 6 | Saturday 27 Apr 1:45pm | Brisbane | Metricon Stadium |
| 7 | Saturday 4 May 6:10pm | West Coast | Optus Stadium |
| 8 | Saturday 11 May 4:35pm | Melbourne | Metricon Stadium |
| 9 | Sunday 19 May 12:40pm | Port Adelaide | Adelaide Oval |
| 10 | Saturday 25 May 7:25pm | Geelong | Metricon Stadium |
| 11 | Saturday 1 Jun 1:45pm | GWS Giants | Showground Stadium |
| 12 | Saturday 8 Jun 4:35pm | North Melbourne | Metricon Stadium |
| 13 | Saturday 15 Jun 1:45pm | St Kilda | Riverway Stadium |
| 14 | BYE | ||
| 15 | Saturday 29 Jun 4:35pm | Sydney | SCG |
| 16 | Saturday 6 Jul 2:10pm | Richmond | Metricon Stadium |
| 17 | Saturday 13 Jul 7:25pm | Adelaide | Metricon Stadium |
| 18 | Saturday 20 Jul 2:10pm | Carlton | Marvel Stadium |
| 19 | Sunday 28 Jul 4:40pm | Essendon | Metricon Stadium |
| 20 | Sunday 4 Aug 1:10pm | Collingwood | MCG |
| 21 | Saturday 10 Aug 4:35pm | Brisbane | Gabba |
| 22 | Sunday 18 Aug 4:40pm | Hawthorn | Marvel Stadium |
| 23 | TBC | GWS Giants | Metricon Stadium |
Games played on
Saturday: 12
Sunday: 9
Teams played twice
Brisbane, St Kilda, GWS Giants, Carlton, Adelaide
2019 Preview and premiership odds
It’s not a good thing to head into a season with premiership odds of $251, even worse when the reigning wooden-spooner Carlton is $100 shorter at $151, but that would be a glass-half-empty outlook and that’s not the way the Suns are approaching 2019.
A 17th-placed finish in 2018 doesn’t sound good, but there were four wins including possibly the best in Gold Coast’s history when they downed the Swans in Sydney.
The ‘out’s aren’t great, but Tom Lynch had been injured anyway and Lukosius and Peter Wright are ready to take over the goal-scoring reins, and the midfield is only stronger for replacing the unaccountable Aaron Hall with Miles, Rankine, Corey Ellis and George Horlin-Smith.
The industry-wide gloom and doom about the Suns may yet prove unwarranted and maybe the club’s new theme song should be ‘Always Look on the Bright Side of Life’ as Gold Coast tackles the future with a bright and positive view (…just don’t look too closely at the full lyrics to the Monty Python classic …).