Fox Footy pundits have lamented a giant missed alternative from Gold Coast in getting smashed by Carlton because the Suns’ hopes of a maiden finals berth took a success.
It got here after Gold Coast’s greatest stretch of type this season with consecutive Darwin wins over the Dogs and Crows earlier than the membership’s bye final weekend, with many predicting the facet was able to enjoying finals for the primary time in its 13-year existence.
Watch each match of each spherical of the 2023 Toyota AFL Premiership Season LIVE on Kayo Sports. New to Kayo? Start your free trial now >
But an underwhelming 59-point MCG defeat on Sunday to a Carlton facet that’d misplaced six in a row denied the Suns a possibility to be on equal wins to the eighth-placed Crows and now sit amongst a logjam of groups within the center pack at 6-7.
Speaking on Fox Footy’s First Crack, twin All-Australian Leigh Montagna stated it was indicators of the “Suns of old” with an excessive amount of inconsistency throughout the board inside Stuart Dew’s facet.
“I was bitterly disappointed with the Gold Coast Suns’ performance. They had a great opportunity,” Montagna stated.
“They’d won five of their last seven and taken a couple of big scalps in Adelaide and the Western Bulldogs.
“But what they dished up was so poor in a golden opportunity against a team that are out of form and down on confidence.
“It was their second-lowest score of the year and they conceded their highest score of the year. The same problems arose, they had too many passengers.
“When they lose they have 7-10 guys that produce well below average of what you expect in a game of footy. I thought Ben King was beaten and they had a number of players really down.
“I think there’s inconsistency issues and maybe they do rely on too few and that’s something Stuart Dew needs to look at.”
It additionally raised the inevitable query of the Suns’ woes after their mid-season bye, falling to an 8-36 document total after the break beneath Dew (excluding 2020 when there was no bye).
While Dew post-match emphasised that the present Gold Coast facet was distinctive to earlier iterations, Montagna believes the membership’s post-bye woes have turn into damning.
“It is the black cloud hanging over the footy club … it is glaringly obvious,” he added.
“It’s a different side and I’ve got more faith in this current group of Gold Coast Suns, but I expected more today.
“It’s onto them now post bye for the rest of the year, if they want to be taken as a genuine threat in the competition, they can’t keep producing results like this and drop off as the year goes on.”
Former Hawthorn sharpshooter Ben Dixon was additionally important of Dew’s facet’s incapacity to rise to the problem with a lot to play for.
“It’s their first game at the MCG (in 2023). They’re coming off two great wins in Darwin and have momentum … everyone is saying: ‘This is the year where they’re going to take that next step,’ (Dew’s had) six years in charge,” Dixon stated on Fox Footy.
“But MCG, the biggest stage, their young players would he jumping out of their skin, but we didn’t see it.”
The Suns face Hawthorn, Collingwood (each residence), Port Adelaide (away) and St Kilda (residence) of their subsequent 4 video games.
Originally revealed as ‘Bitterly disappointed’: Great’s scathing name on Suns’ ‘dark cloud’ as horrific historical past repeating
Source: www.news.com.au
