Bigger in numbers, louder in voice and more passionate than ever, support for the Gold Coast SUNS is on a pleasing upward trend with the club recording an increase in crowds at Metricon Stadium in 2013.
In a season of strong improvement, the Gold Coasters produced eight memorable victories including six at home and an unforgettable performance which resulted in Gary Ablett leading his side to a thrilling win over Collingwood in Round 17.
Supporters of the club were also encouraged by impressive performances against eventual Premiers Hawthorn and Preliminary finalists Geelong, matches which seemed to make the broader AFL community sit up and take notice of the lads from the Sunshine State.
The success of superstar Gary Ablett and Rising star Jaeger O’Meara are already paying dividends for the Gold Coasters with online fans flocking to the clubs Facebook, Twitter and Instagram platforms in record numbers.
There has also been unprecedented interest in 2014 memberships well before the official on sale period.
Gold Coast SUNS members and visitors to Metricon Stadium enjoy the best match day experience in Australian sport, a key focus for the organisations off-field team who partnered with Disney to ensure the fans attending SUNS matches received a unique experience.
GC SUNS Chief Operating Officer Andrew Travis says the club constantly reviews their match day offerings in line with valuable feedback provided by stadium guests.
“Providing a high-quality experience for the customer and understanding what is important to them has been an essential part of our strategy in delivering a first class match-day experience for footy fans attending Metricon Stadium,” Travis said.
“The feedback and surveys we constantly receive through our membership department indicate that fans attending Metricon Stadium value our match day offerings and our themed Rounds like Family Day and Carnival night.”
“There is a science to it, and we certainly do our best to maximise all available opportunities and to ensure we engage with and include as many guests as possible in the game-day activities.”
With almost 20,000 local and national sporting fans converging to the Gold Coast over consecutive weeks for the Club’s Sat2Day showdowns against Collingwood and Carlton, Travis said the SUNS were proud to be attracting significant interstate interest.
Gold Coast SUNS Midfielder Danny Stanley, who played in both blockbusters against the AFL juggernauts, said the entire playing group were continually taken aback by the growing crowd numbers.
“The fans have been really good this year, and they are continuing to grow and we really notice it every time we are out there,” he said.
“We love playing at home in front of a sea of red, so hopefully they’ll keep coming along in bigger and better numbers next year.”
