Among the mere mortals, Noah Anderson is poised to complete what at least statistically is the best first 100 games in Gold Coast SUNS history.

Going into his 100th game against the Brisbane Lions at People First Stadium on Saturday afternoon, Anderson has amassed the 2426 possessions, 40 goals, 44 Brownlow Medal votes, 303 tackles and 492 clearances. Plus whatever medal votes he has earned this year.

He’s finished 6th-8th-2nd-1st in the club best & fairest, with another high finish coming this year.

They are numbers that don’t compare to the incomparable Gary Ablett, who was already a superstar when he landed on the coast as the SUNS’ marquee signing.

Ablett’s first 100 games in red and yellow delivered 3025 possessions, 120 goals, a staggering 112 medal votes, 550 tackles and 676 clearances. He finished 1st-1st-1st-4th-6th in the B&F in that time, only sliding to 4^th in 2014 because he missed seven games through injury, and 6^th in 2016, when he missed eight games.

But in comparison to Ablett’s first 100 games at Geelong, when he played mainly as a half forward, Anderson is a clear winner. Ablett had 1517 possessions, 135 goals, 14 votes, 344 tackles and 201 clearances, and had four top 10 B&F finishes – 4th-8th-3rd-3rd.

And among the young players who have started their career at the SUNS, and even the other imports to the club, Anderson’s numbers are second to none.

He ranks 2nd to Ablett for possessions, votes (even without his 2024 votes) and clearances, 11th in goals and 10th in tackles. And his B&F record is strong, and will most likely include three top three finishes by the end of the year.

Plus, Anderson has missed only three games in getting to 100 – a club record. Next best is Touk Miller (10), Charlie Ballard (12) and Jack Lukosius (13).

And he will be the youngest of 24 SUNS 100-gamers – 20 days younger than Miller. Lukosius, Tom Lynch and Ballard also reached this mark before their 24^th birthday.

Because this 100-game milestone reflection is primarily about Anderson the statistical comparison is heavily weighted towards midfielders.

It sees David Swallow ranked top 10 in each category – 3rd for possessions, 4th for clearances and 5th for tackles, while ranking 9th in medal votes and 10th in goals and recording six top 10 B&F finishes, including a 1st and 2nd.

Similarly, Aaron Hall ranked top 10 in each statistical category despite two top 10 B&F finishes. He was 7^th in 2015 and 5^th in 2016.

Touk Miller, comparatively something of  a statistical slow burn in his early years before winning the B&F in 2021-22, was top 10 in all statistics at 100 games – except goals. He had five top 10 B&F finishes – 4th-7th-8th-2nd-6th.

As was always going to be the case with a key defender, Sam Collins’ statistical rankings don’t reflect in any way the true worth of a player who has finished 1st-4th-5th-2nd in the B&F, with another high finish looming this year.

Significantly, across the competition since Gold Coast joined the League in 2011, only six players have had more possessions in their first 100 games – Clayton Oliver (2764), Sam Walsh (2748), Adam Treloar (2626), Patrick Cripps (2605), Caleb Serong (2542) and Zach Merrett (2501). Serong has played only 98 games.

For the sake of the exercise, if we “guesstimate” Anderson will poll 19 Brownlow votes in his first 19 games this – not unreasonable considering he sits 10th in the Coaches Association Player of the Year voting -  he would have 63 votes at 100 games.

Patrick Cripps is the only player new to the competition since 2011 who has polled more than 63 votes in his first 100 games. He had 75. Walsh has 63 votes from 99 games, plus any he might poll in his first game this year, when he had a 34 possessions, 13 tackles and eight clearances – all game high – in a narrow 100th game loss to Adelaide.

If family bragging rights are important to the SUNS #15, he’s already covered his father Dean, who played 150 games for Hawthorn and StKilda from 1988-1996. His statistics at 100 games were 2024 possessions, 10 Brownlow votes and 88 goals.

But it won’t escape Anderson Jnr’s attention that by the time Anderson Snr had reached 100 games he’d played seven finals and was a dual premiership player, having won the flag with the Hawks in 1989 in his 21st game and 1991 in his 64th game.

As a 22-year-old Dean Anderson kicked a career-best four goals to go with 15 possessions in the 1989 grand final, when Geelong’s Gary Ablett Snr kicked nine goals in a six-point Hawthorn win, and followed up with eight possessions and a goal in a 53-point win over West Coast in 1991, when the grand final was played at Waverley due to reconstruction work at the MCG.

Drafted at pick #2 behind long-time mate Matt Rowell in 2019, Noah Anderson will be the second player from his draft class to 100 games. Melbourne’s Kysaiah Pickett, drafted at #15, posted his ton in Round 17 – but with the help of seven finals – and is the leading goal-kicker from that draft at 152.

Fremantle’s Caleb Serong, pick 8, is third on the games list at 98 and is the leading possession-winner from the 2019 draft with 2542, ahead of Anderson at 2426 and GWS pick #10 Tom Green at 2208.

Anderson’s 44 Brownlow votes to the end of last year heads Serong (35), Sydney pick #39 Chad Warner (29), Green (26) and Rowell (25). Pickett had eight votes to the same stage.

Anderson, Serong, Warner, Green and Melbourne’s pick #3 Luke Jackson, now at Fremantle, were all chosen in the All-Australian squad last year, with Serong winning a spot in the A/A team.

Anderson, Serong and Hawthorn’s Will Day, pick #13 in the 2019 Draft, are the only players from that year to have won a club B&F.