A Gary Ablett masterclass has inspired Gold Coast to an upset 13-point win over St Kilda at Metricon Stadium.
Gold Coast coach Guy McKenna says the Suns' victory had a lot to do with the fitness department. Picture: Williams Jerad Source: Gold Coast Bulletin
A GARY Ablett masterclass handed the Suns a stunning 13-point opening-round victory over St Kilda last night.
The Suns skipper booted three of his four goals in the final quarter to lead his side to a 13.12 (90) to 10.17 (77) victory in front of 13,882 fans at Metricon Stadium.
He was a tireless presence around the ball, cutting off St Kilda attacking raids one minute and setting up Suns scoring opportunities the next.
His 34 touches and nine clearances, coupled with his mastery in front of goal, ensured he starts the season with three Brownlow votes.
Asked about Ablett's performance Suns coach Guy McKenna said: "Gaz Jnr, I know he's very humble in saying his father could do better things than him but he was special again tonight he has been special ever since he got up here."
Ablett was the headliner but it was no solo act.
Rory Thompson was superb on Saints skipper Nick Riewoldt.
The two Southport products waged war for four quarters and Thompson, in just his 14th game, won the day, restricting Riewoldt to two goals.
New recruit Greg Broughton shut down the always dangerous Stephen Milne, Charlie Dixon was a giant in the ruck and David Swallow bashed and crashed his way into the game to be a significant factor in the second half.
The repeated promise from coach McKenna this summer has been that his men would enter their third AFL season with a greater capacity to compete for longer.
That is beyond dispute after they finished all over the Saints in the second half.
"I think it's the work the boys have done in the pre-season ... the players have bought into that, worked themselves really hard and to win a second half like that was really impressive," McKenna said.
"A bit of reward for effort, two years have been fairly lean.
"It's just starting to dig in a bit and starting to get reward for effort.
"Tonight was a pleasing result to get the first win under our belt."
Credit must be paid to the Suns' new fitness levels but this win went deeper than that.
All the mountain climbing in Arizona means nothing if marks are dropped and they turn the ball over, which the Suns did all too regularly in the opening half.
They won this game because they held their nerve when things didn't go their way in the second quarter and were desperate to the finish.
They dominated the Saints at the stoppages and in the contested possession count.
The Suns broke even with the inside 50 entries. But they struggled to capitalise on their chances.
What McKenna really needs is some more wins to erase the memories of the many losses.
St Kilda smacked the Gold Coast by 95 and 92 points last year and it appears to have left some scars.
After a promising opening quarter, boldness was required from the Suns.
Instead McKenna allowed the game to slip temporarily from his grasp in the second quarter with his defensive set-up.
The Suns were desperate to get numbers behind the ball to restrict the scoring ability of the Saints' dangerous forwards.
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