Setting Suns lower sights to AFL wildcard round | The Examiner - Australia News Beep

Once flag favourites, Damien Hardwick’s Gold Coast are now battling just to make a wild card spot. Photo: Richard Wainwright/AAP PHOTOS

The outside chatter at the start of the year evoked a shot at the flag, but Gold Coast have lowered their sights to merely scraping into the top 10 as the club battles a rut that is threatening to derail their season.

Damien Hardwick’s men slumped to their fifth consecutive loss on Sunday when they managed just three goals in a 51-point blow-out against ladder leaders Fremantle in Perth.

The 11.14 (80) to 3.11 (29) defeat left Gold Coast (7-8) in 11th spot on the ladder and likely needing four or potentially five wins from their last eight matches just to scrape into the AFL’s new wildcard finals round.

That comes in stark contrast to just three months ago, when the Suns were rated flag favourites after opening their season with commanding wins over Geelong, West Coast and Richmond.

Sam Switkowski on Zeke Uwland: the Suns were manhandled by the Dockers at Optus Oval. (Richard Wainwright/AAP PHOTOS)

Gold Coast host Collingwood in a crunch 10th versus 11th clash on Saturday night, before facing Adelaide (away), Bulldogs (home), Carlton (away), Melbourne (home), GWS (away), Brisbane (away) and St Kilda (away) in a tricky run home.

“It’s an eight week season for us,” coach Hardwick said.

“At the end of the day, (if) we win more games than we don’t, we probably scrape into the top 10. That’s got to be the aim of us at the moment.”

Suns going down: Gold Coast have much to think about after another loss, this time to Fremantle. (Richard Wainwright/AAP PHOTOS)

The Suns beat Fremantle by one point in last year’s elimination final in Perth.

Gold Coast entered Sunday’s re-match with 10 changes from that match, with many inclusions being younger players.

But the way Gold Coast were outpressured and outmuscled by a ferocious Fremantle outfit showed the gulf between the Suns and what it takes to be a premiership contender this year.

Hardwick conceded the Suns looked like a middling side against Fremantle, but he hasn’t given up hope on the season.

“I think if we get a game up and going, and if our very best players play to their capacity, we are a chance of beating most sides,” Hardwick said.

“We probably haven’t played to the level of the expectation that we’ve got on ourselves, first and foremost, but also the media.

“So people are always going to come when you don’t live up to those expectations, and we’re disappointed with where we’re at.

“We’ve got to take stock, and we’ve got eight weeks to try and turn it around.”

Star recruit Christian Petracca was held to just 17 disposals and five clearances against Fremantle, while also spending time in attack.

Fellow midfielder Touk Miller (18 disposals, one clearance) was also quiet, with Gold Coast in desperate need to get more out of their star-studded on-ball division.

Australian Associated Press

Setting Suns lower sights to AFL wildcard round | The Examiner

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