Gold Coast V Melbourne: The Steven King Cup
I’ll tell you what, it’s been a very good long weekend of football so far (as I sit writing this, the Bulldogs v Bombers has yet to kick off). We’ve had a bit of everything, big marks, clutch goals, close games between premiership contenders and crashing back to reality for rebuilding teams. What we haven’t really had as of yet (see the above parenthetical) is a proper upset! Sure, Adelaide were tipped pretty heavily against Freo but when two decent sides come together you expect anything. According to the AFL app only six percent of punters had the Demons pipping the Suns at the G on a beautiful Easter Sunday afternoon, and for good reason! Gold Coast looked unassailable in their first three games this year and Melbourne have played some very exciting quarters of football without really stringing a full game together. But today was the day the Demons brought their best, and as it turns out their best is scintillating.
Suns Big Guns Misfire
An opinion I generally hold about the best sides is that their top players can have an off game and the role players around them can pick up the slack. With Petracca and Humphrey both missing this matchup there was a real opportunity for someone like Sam Clohesy or Wil Powell to really put this young Demons team to the sword, but other than some patches in the first and third quarters it seemed that nobody was willing to take responsibility.
Matt Rowell looked more underdone than a medium rare chicken breast, which makes the Humphrey suspension all the more disappointing for Suns supporters. He didn’t look to have the strength through the legs to drive out of those stoppage tackles the way he managed to such brilliant effect last year, though with game time that will come. It’s just a shame that only Noah Anderson seemed willing to give him a hand in the clearance work, managing a team-high seven. In hindsight, it was certainly not a promising sign for the Suns to have Rowell starting the game off on the bench.
It should be noted that the blame around clearance doesn’t lay squarely at the feet of the Suns mids, of course. There probably need to be some fingers pointing squarely at the big chest of Witts here too. The Suns big man was absolutely monstered all around the ground by the great Max Gawn, barely able to compete in the air and beaten for pure strength in the contest. Even worse, when Harrison Petty had a stint in the ruck, he managed to come up just about even, giving Melbourne a massive opportunity to keep up their pressure in moments when the Suns failed to capitalise on this mismatch. I honestly thought Witts could be a good foil to Gawn today, but it wasn’t to be. Watch Witts carefully next week as he goes against the dangerously in form Brodie Grundy. If he and the Suns can bounce back against both Grundy and the Swans it’ll be a big win for them.
And perhaps the biggest gun of all for the Suns, the current leader in the Coleman medal race Ben King was dealt with very handily by the team defence of Melbourne. His 3.1 scoreline may not seem like a loss when viewed on its own, but the fact that particularly Disco Turner and Tom McDonald managed to keep him to six marks and forced the ball to a contest is an absolute testament to the work they put in on him. Sure, Turner did give Ben King one of the easier marks of his career early in the game after giving him about six metres of free room but they tightened the screws after that, forcing him to play up the ground more than King would have wanted, removing his marking threat inside 50 and forcing young Ethan Read and Jed Walter to be the primary targets throughout the whole second half. This was made all the harder with their go to small forward Ben Long having almost no impact today whatsoever, once again leaving the Suns less developed smalls to pick up a huge burden.
Early on, I thought Dan Rioli looked poised to break the game open with fresh legs coming off a long break, but unlike one Ed Langdon he just couldn’t keep up with the pace of the game for the duration. I will say that when Rioli was on and running in those beautiful early handball chains for Gold Coast he looked like the million dollar man, so hopefully we can see more of that as the season goes on.
The whole Gold Coast defence looked all at sea today with the exception of John Noble, who arguably wasn’t even really looking to play an overly defensive role anyway. Mac Andrew looked nothing like his usually lethal self, arriving late to marking contests and when he actually got there, he dropped marks inside 50 in an uncharacteristically mild mannered performance. In fact, he seemed to save most of his ire for his teammates down back, pointing fingers and asking someone else to take ownership of the defence. Sam Collins fared slightly better in terms of raw intercepts but at no point did he look like he could start a damaging chain against the Demons off the back of that good work. Maybe the lack of carbs from the carnivore diet has caught up with his decision making. Who’s to say really.
The Dees Highway To Hell
Well, it was a fast track to hell, at least for the Suns. The youthful Demons have played some very good football in portions throughout the start of the season, so in hindsight it seems like it was only a matter of time before they strung four quarters of it together in a row. I was impressed with the unit’s ability to put their weak starts behind them and put together a competitive start against a Suns outfit that looked to be very intimidating.
For my money, the best part of today for the Dees was watching a team on the rebuild with almost the platonic ideal age profile running around. The result wasn’t dependent entirely on a small contingent of veterans or a high draft pick having world class games (Sorry West Coast), but rather it was experienced heads and youthful hearts coming together in an almost romantic fashion. I know I just spent a lot of time on poor performances from some important Gold Coast players but make no mistake: the new look, go fast Dees are a dangerous football side. And I think they’re also a well drilled football side.
In the first quarter and a half, their clearance work seemed to function on a simple but elegant plan: give it to Kozzy. And by that I don’t mean just look for Kozzy at every available opportunity, I mean that there seemed to be a concerted effort to chain handballs through the centre of the ground while Kozzy ran from behind the centre bounce to receive one final handball before using his ability as the best kick through that midfield to deliver the ball inside 50 to an on song Brody Mihocek and a competitive Jacob van Rooyen. And in this we can find a microcosm of the Dees whole philosophy from today; the former St Kilda midfielder Jack Steele in the guts. The old, calm head stood strong under pressure before giving hands to the more directly dangerous Kozzy Pickett. Steele tackled hard, had 11 clearances and overall probably took home three votes. Why St Kilda didn’t want to have this man on their team anymore, I do not know.
Max Gawn was Max Gawn.
That says it all. He monstered Witts around the ground and in the ruck, outplaying, outworking and outsmarting him at every turn. He popped up in the important moments when the game was on the line. I’d say more about the great man, but honestly you run out of superlatives. If we’re to judge a player’s greatness by how much better they are than their peers and competition in their own eras then there’s a real case to be made that Max Gawn is the greatest ruckman the game’s seen.
Forward of the ball for the Dees I thought Jai Culley played a great game pushing forward from the wing, if not a truly statistically relevant one. He presented well throughout, looking dangerous without really turning it on to the next level. Another discard from another club turned handy pickup for Melbourne, hopefully this can turn into a trend for them. Another young stud for the Dees, in Harvery Langford, really impressed forward of the ball, as he worked off the opposite wing, creating space in general play and in forward 50 stoppages. If he can further develop this positional versatility he’ll be an absolute weapon for Melbourne in years to come.
Defensively, I’d say that nobody really stood out, but honestly that’s completely fine. The Suns have one of the best key forwards in the competition and they kept him honest and made him earn every touch in a way that not many team defences have managed over the past couple of seasons. I thought Christian Salem was there and thereabouts, very clean with the ball.
But far and away, my favourite player on the ground today had to be Jake Melksham. The 34 year old attacked the footy like a man possessed early, leading well and putting pressure on the Suns defence. He ended the day kicking four straight and adding to his highlight reel with an incredible leaping mark, one that no doubt the veteran will be reliving with a smile for the next week. He’s certainly presented an interesting dilemma for the selection committee, arguably producing an undroppable performance coming in for Bayley Fritsch.
Young Suns Shine (Relatively Speaking)
It’s certainly not all doom and gloom on the Gold Coast. In fact, they’ll wake up tomorrow, do some recovery and come back stronger. But three young Suns in particular will be able to hold their heads high in my estimation (for whatever you feel that’s worth).
Young Will Graham played a very respectable game in an outing where the Sherrin wasn’t exactly being delivered on a silver platter. He really lifted in the third quarter like his namesake when he got on the trail of the Tooth Fairy in Michael Mann’s criminally underrated crime thriller Manhunter. It was great to see a young player meet the pressure and come out on top in his role. He didn’t quite take the game by the scruff of the neck but he’s an exciting prospect.
On his return to the senior side, Jed Walter looked composed and in control, especially in the second half when he was playing as the deepest forward. When the game was in the balance he pushed hard, took some impressive marks and generally looked to be a higher quality than I can recall seeing him in the past.
Perhaps the most impressive of the inexperienced Suns today was Lachie Gulbin. His work rate around the ground was enviable, he got plenty of the ball and ended the day with eight score involvements. Unlike Will Graham he looked to take the fact that his fellow forwards weren’t getting premium delivery personally and took matters into his own hands. He certainly grew in my estimation today and I’ll be keeping an eye on his career moving forward.
Speaking of Lachie Gulbin, I have it on good authority that his playing today was a great lift to Suns fans in general (thanks Hodgy). Gulbin was the recipient of a very important number for the Suns: 39. A massive young Suns fan named Ryley Kemp was part of a match day experience with Gold Coast through the Ronald McDonald House Charity and his commitment and enthusiasm made an impact that was equal parts instant, profound and eternal to those present. As a result he was invited back to the club to go through a day as an AFL footballer, training, gymming and meeting with the team after signing a contract to wear #39 for the Suns. Ryley unfortunately passed away in 2023 as a result of an inoperable brain tumor, but he left a strong legacy at the Suns. Lachie Gulbin was presented this valued number by Ryley’s parents after his work ethic and strong personal conduct was noted by those within the club. The importance of seeing a good man run out onto the MCG wearing a number imbued with spiritual significance cannot be overstated, and I am confident in saying that Ryley would have been proud to see Gulbin’s efforts today.
Sometimes the game is more than just a game. I know that we are all in a difficult situation with the cost of living at the moment but perhaps in light of this and innumerable other stories we can find it within ourselves to contribute something to people in need this Easter.
But before that we’ll head back to the nonsense.
So What Actually Happened?
I’m so glad I asked. It’s actually quite simple, thankfully. It was all in the contest. Melbourne dominated hitouts and total clearances, managing to double Gold Coast in centre clearance. They handily won contested possession and didn’t turn it over. I know, I’m very insightful.
A look into where both teams held the ball throughout the game also tells us a story. In all but the third quarter Melbourne just dominated possession in the middle of the ground and even in that third quarter, Gold Coast still looked up the line more than they managed to find the corridor. In the second, it honestly seemed like the Dees booked VIP passage through the middle of the ground, soaring through with nary a care in the world at times.
A true positive for Suns supporters to take out of this was the accuracy at goal today. It wasn’t just a case of kicking well, players found the ball in the right position when the opportunity presented itself. They’ll win a lot of games as a forward unit if they can continue this trend.
In Conclusion
It might be stating the obvious but that was an absolutely belting game of footy. I think the Dees and their supporters should be absolutely proud to have embarrassed David King around his rebuild comments from Sunday. This is an exciting team to watch and they’re poised to take some big scalps if they can keep playing this brand of footy. The Suns are a tremendous side and will only get better in the next few weeks with Humphrey and Petracca coming back.
But for now, Melbourne hold the coveted “Teams Coached By Steven King In The AFL” cup. It’s very exclusive.
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