The Gold Coast Suns find themselves outside of the top eight for the first time since Round 1 with pressure is mounting on the entire organisation. Their coach Damien Hardwick expressed his frustration at his team’s condition last week by making a middle-finger gesture on television that earned him a fine for his troubles. He showed his desperation by claiming that Fox should pick up the tab. 

There’s little doubt the Suns have shown improvement in 2025, and their position on the ladder is influenced to some extent by having played fewer games than their rivals for a playoff role at the end of the season, courtesy of the disruption caused by Cyclone Alfred in March. 

However, they are following the same trajectory that hindered the club in past years whenever they appeared to be nearing their potential. As a consequence, that Hardwick gesture should be considered as more than a mere behavioral lapse. It’s a distress signal that does not bode well for the Queenslanders.

While the Suns are eager to remain in contention with the top eight, Melbourne faces its own crisis, which is similarly deep-seated but in a much different way. After recovering from a disappointing start to the season and nearing a return to respectability among its peer clubs, the Demons have experienced a decline in status, driven by the fact that while their form has been reasonable (see their performance against the ladder leader in the Kings Birthday match), their conversion in front of goal is poor enough to rank last in the competition. Furthermore, their opponents find them exceptionally easy to score against. As a result, they have effectively eliminated themselves from the finals race and are again positioned to finish in the bottom half of the ladder.

The Demons have not experienced victory for a month, and this encounter at People First Stadium, the home of the Gold Coast Suns, appears to be beyond their reach. 

However, it’s worth recalling they have a good record against the Suns at this venue. Their achievement of a significantly weaker side there less than twelve months ago was outstanding. In the absence of key players, they successfully gained control of the midfield, maintained a solid defence, and with Jack Viney and Ed Langdon starring and the young tall key forwards finding some connection, they ultimately overwhelmed the Suns scoring 18 goals and 9 behinds to secure a 9-goal victory. Although such a glam scoreline is unprecedented for the Demons in 2025, it will undoubtedly trouble Hardwick and is likely to increase his anxiety as the game approaches.

The question is whether the Demons possess the resilience to overcome the memory of their most recent performance against Port Adelaide, where they squandered numerous opportunities to close the gap with the home side, as well as their earlier encounter against the Suns, where they were eviscerated to the tune of 58 points at the MCG after kicking 2.9 in the first half. 

The big issue, we were told, earlier in the season was that the players were still getting used to a new game plan. They’ve had plenty of time to adjust and improve, they’ve shown some good progress but the old problem of forward connection continues to rear its ugly head. The mission is to overcome some prolific midfielders like Noah Anderson, Matt Rowell and Touk Miller, take control of the engine room which they are certainly capable of and move the ball directly into the forward line and convert truly. 

They’ve been seething over the consequences of recent failures for two weeks and watched while teams like the Blues and the Bombers have copped all of the media flak. The Demons need to perform this week to avoid getting the middle finger from the press.

I watched the Suns game closely because I had little else to do over the last weekend. I saw how the GWS Giants twice conceded an early lead and then easily reeled them in to take the lead and win. There was panic in their eyes and weakness in their hearts of the Suns. They are definitely vulnerable.

The Demons must get themselves on target sooner rather than later and there’s no better time to do so on what is forecast as a wet, soggy day at Carrara. 

Bring it on.

Melbourne by 37 points.

THE GAME

Gold Coast Suns vs Melbourne at Peoples First Stadium on Saturday 29 June 2025 at 1.20pm

HEAD TO HEAD 

Overall - Gold Coast Suns 4 wins Melbourne 15 wins

At Peoples First Stadium - Gold Coast Suns 1 win Melbourne 5 wins 

Past five matches - Gold Coast Suns 1 win Melbourne 4 wins 

The Coaches - Hardwick 1 win Goodwin 1 win 

THE LAST TIME THEY MET

Gold Coast Suns 18.12.120 defeated Melbourne 8.14.62 at The MCG, Round 3 2025

It was inevitable that the accident-prone Demons were going to get blown away in the end. They kicked 2.9 in a first half (as if we need reminding) which was otherwise tightly contested. The game then went according to the Dees’ 2025 script as the Suns went on a 13.4 scoring spree in the second half to record a big victory. Langdon, Oliver and the skipper stood out but it was a sad performance overall.

THE TEAMS

GOLD COAST SUNS

B B. Uwland, M. Andrew, S. Collins

HB J. Noble, W. Powell, D. Rioli

C L. Weller, M. Rowell, B. Fiorini

HF B. Ainsworth, S. Flanders, B. Humphrey

F B. Long, J. Walter, B. King

FOLL J. Witts, T. Miller, N. Anderson

I/C C. Budarick, S. Clohesy, J. Jeffrey, E. Read, A. Sexton

EMG A. Davies, N. Holman, N. Moyle

IN A. Sexton

OUT N. Holman (omitted)

MELBOURNE

B J. Bowey, S. May, C. Salem

HB J. McVee, D. Turner, B. Howes

C E. Langdon, C. Petracca, H. Langford

HF B. Fritsch, M. Jefferson, K. Chandler

F J. Melksham, H. Petty, K. Pickett

FOLL M. Gawn, C. Oliver, J. Viney

I/C X. Lindsay, T. Rivers, H. Sharp, T. Sparrow, K. Tholstrup

EMG J. Van Rooyen, J. Lever, T. Woewodin

IN M. Jefferson, H. Sharp, K. Tholstrup

OUT J. Lever (omitted), J. Van Rooyen (omitted), C. Windsor (omitted)

Injury List: Round 16 

Charlie Spargo — Scapula / 1 - 2 weeks 

Oliver Sestan — hamstring / TBC

Aidan Johnson — ankle / 4 - 6 weeks

Shane McAdam — Achilles / season

Andy Moniz-Wakefield — knee / season

Will we even kick 37 points? 😂

2.9 in first half.. bruh…

6 hours ago, YesitwasaWin4theAges said:

Will we even kick 37 points? 😂

For sure we will. And maybe even some goals too!

On 25/06/2025 at 10:39, Demonland said:

The Gold Coast Suns find themselves outside of the top eight for the first time since Round 1 with pressure is mounting on the entire organisation. Their coach Damien Hardwick expressed his frustration at his team’s condition last week by making a middle-finger gesture on television that earned him a fine for his troubles. He showed his desperation by claiming that Fox should pick up the tab. 

There’s little doubt the Suns have shown improvement in 2025, and their position on the ladder is influenced to some extent by having played fewer games than their rivals for a playoff role at the end of the season, courtesy of the disruption caused by Cyclone Alfred in March. 

However, they are following the same trajectory that hindered the club in past years whenever they appeared to be nearing their potential. As a consequence, that Hardwick gesture should be considered as more than a mere behavioral lapse. It’s a distress signal that does not bode well for the Queenslanders.

While the Suns are eager to remain in contention with the top eight, Melbourne faces its own crisis, which is similarly deep-seated but in a much different way. After recovering from a disappointing start to the season and nearing a return to respectability among its peer clubs, the Demons have experienced a decline in status, driven by the fact that while their form has been reasonable (see their performance against the ladder leader in the Kings Birthday match), their conversion in front of goal is poor enough to rank last in the competition. Furthermore, their opponents find them exceptionally easy to score against. As a result, they have effectively eliminated themselves from the finals race and are again positioned to finish in the bottom half of the ladder.

The Demons have not experienced victory for a month, and this encounter at People First Stadium, the home of the Gold Coast Suns, appears to be beyond their reach. 

However, it’s worth recalling they have a good record against the Suns at this venue. Their achievement of a significantly weaker side there less than twelve months ago was outstanding. In the absence of key players, they successfully gained control of the midfield, maintained a solid defence, and with Jack Viney and Ed Langdon starring and the young tall key forwards finding some connection, they ultimately overwhelmed the Suns scoring 18 goals and 9 behinds to secure a 9-goal victory. Although such a glam scoreline is unprecedented for the Demons in 2025, it will undoubtedly trouble Hardwick and is likely to increase his anxiety as the game approaches.

The question is whether the Demons possess the resilience to overcome the memory of their most recent performance against Port Adelaide, where they squandered numerous opportunities to close the gap with the home side, as well as their earlier encounter against the Suns, where they were eviscerated to the tune of 58 points at the MCG after kicking 2.9 in the first half. 

The big issue, we were told, earlier in the season was that the players were still getting used to a new game plan. They’ve had plenty of time to adjust and improve, they’ve shown some good progress but the old problem of forward connection continues to rear its ugly head. The mission is to overcome some prolific midfielders like Noah Anderson, Matt Rowell and Touk Miller, take control of the engine room which they are certainly capable of and move the ball directly into the forward line and convert truly. 

They’ve been seething over the consequences of recent failures for two weeks and watched while teams like the Blues and the Bombers have copped all of the media flak. The Demons need to perform this week to avoid getting the middle finger from the press.

I watched the Suns game closely because I had little else to do over the last weekend. I saw how the GWS Giants twice conceded an early lead and then easily reeled them in to take the lead and win. There was panic in their eyes and weakness in their hearts of the Suns. They are definitely vulnerable.

The Demons must get themselves on target sooner rather than later and there’s no better time to do so on what is forecast as a wet, soggy day at Carrara. 

Bring it on.

Melbourne by 37 points.

THE GAME

Gold Coast Suns vs Melbourne at Peoples First Stadium on Saturday 29 June 2025 at 1.20pm

HEAD TO HEAD 

Overall - Gold Coast Suns 4 wins Melbourne 15 wins

At Peoples First Stadium - Gold Coast Suns 1 win Melbourne 5 wins 

Past five matches - Gold Coast Suns 1 win Melbourne 4 wins 

The Coaches - Hardwick 1 win Goodwin 1 win 

THE LAST TIME THEY MET

Gold Coast Suns 18.12.120 defeated Melbourne 8.14.62 at The MCG, Round 3 2025

It was inevitable that the accident-prone Demons were going to get blown away in the end. They kicked 2.9 in a first half (as if we need reminding) which was otherwise tightly contested. The game then went according to the Dees’ 2025 script as the Suns went on a 13.4 scoring spree in the second half to record a big victory. Langdon, Oliver and the skipper stood out but it was a sad performance overall.

THE TEAMS

GOLD COAST SUNS

B B. Uwland, M. Andrew, S. Collins

HB J. Noble, W. Powell, D. Rioli

C L. Weller, M. Rowell, B. Fiorini

HF B. Ainsworth, S. Flanders, B. Humphrey

F B. Long, J. Walter, B. King

FOLL J. Witts, T. Miller, N. Anderson

I/C C. Budarick, S. Clohesy, J. Jeffrey, E. Read, A. Sexton

EMG A. Davies, N. Holman, N. Moyle

IN A. Sexton

OUT N. Holman (omitted)

MELBOURNE

B J. Bowey, S. May, C. Salem

HB J. McVee, D. Turner, B. Howes

C E. Langdon, C. Petracca, H. Langford

HF B. Fritsch, M. Jefferson, K. Chandler

F J. Melksham, H. Petty, K. Pickett

FOLL M. Gawn, C. Oliver, J. Viney

I/C X. Lindsay, T. Rivers, H. Sharp, T. Sparrow, K. Tholstrup

EMG J. Van Rooyen, J. Lever, T. Woewodin

IN M. Jefferson, H. Sharp, K. Tholstrup

OUT J. Lever (omitted), J. Van Rooyen (omitted), C. Windsor (omitted)

Injury List: Round 16 

Charlie Spargo — Scapula / 1 - 2 weeks 

Oliver Sestan — hamstring / TBC

Aidan Johnson — ankle / 4 - 6 weeks

Shane McAdam — Achilles / season

Andy Moniz-Wakefield — knee / season

We will get smashed, 65 points