The Gold Coast Suns have continued a round of boilovers, upsetting the Brisbane Lions in their best performance for the season, three weeks after sacking former coach Stuart Dew as their finals hopes faded.
Coming into the last quarter with a 17-point lead, the last quarter was a rout, with the Suns piling on five goals to one. The final margin of 41 was an accurate reflection of a match they had the better of from the beginning.
As it is, the Suns still need to win all four of their remaining four games to have a hope of qualifying. It’s an unlikely prospect, but based on their first win over the Lions since 2018, they at least have got something on which to build.
The night was highlighted by five goals to spearhead Ben King, who returned to form with five goals, all from marks. King attacked each contest with relish and his kicking was true, aided by some pinpoint delivery from upfield.
Jy Farrar of the Gold Coast Suns.Credit: AFL Photos / Getty Images
Gold Coast was victorious 15.6 (96) to 7.13 (55).
And in an old-fashioned head-to-head, Suns co-captain Touk Miller took Lions superstar Lachie Neale from the opening bounce and mostly stayed with him. Miller wore Neale down from contest to contest, winning the Marcus Ashcroft medal in an inspirational performance.
The Lions’ hold on third on the ladder remains secure for now, but the loss is a blow to their hopes of claiming a top-two spot and a home qualifying final. They clearly missed Will Ashcroft, gone for the season with a knee injury, and had few winners on the night.
From the start, there was an energy and purpose to the Suns’ play that went missing after their successful mid-season sojourn in Darwin. Nick Holman didn’t have much of the ball, but his tackling intensity set the standard for the Suns’ effort.
Noah Anderson was the architect. He hit King with a bullet 20 metres out to get the Suns’ moving, before Jack Lukosius found the full-forward again with an even more difficult kick. King delivered, his confidence rising by the minute.
The Lions had the better of the back end of the first quarter, and a free kick to Dayne Zorko on the siren saw them a goal up at the break. But something was amiss, and they looked unprepared for what was about to hit them.
The Suns broke the contest open with a third-quarter burst of five goals to two. Anderson was instrumental, snapping a goal himself and adding a direct assist to Levi Casboult for another. They ran away with the last quarter, the Lions looking exhausted and out of answers.
The Suns’ night was only blotted by Mac Andrew, who spoiled an excellent game with a rush of blood in the last quarter as he slung Jarrod Berry when the ball was not in play, in an incident that should be looked at by the AFL match review officer.
