The SUNS notched their first win of 2019 on the weekend and rewarded members and fans who attended the match with a thrilling finish. After a pair of strong showings to start the season, the SUNS Media team have outlined three key takeaways from the three-point victory. 

Contested-ball dominance 

Coming up against the likes of Nat Fyfe and David Mundy didn’t stop the SUNS. The on-ball brigade of David Swallow, Touk Miller, Anthony Miles, Jack Bowes and Brayden Fiorini combined to win the contested possessions count convincingly (+19). Bowes and Fiorini in particular had the task on Fyfe, one of the competition’s leading midfielders and performed admirably. Both players are continuing to develop into bigger-bodied mids and were able to match it with Freo’s own midfield bulls.

Despite being slightly outworked in the hitouts and clearances tallies, the SUNS were hungrier at the source and found themselves first to the football more regularly. With the Western Bulldogs set to field a similarly imposing midfield unit in Round 3, Gold Coast will be keen to continue where they left off at Marvel Stadium.

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Disposal deficiencies

There’s no doubt the SUNS were wasteful with the football in front of goal, recording 19 behinds to go with just seven goals for the day. In particular, the third quarter saw the SUNS pile on eight behinds with no majors.

It put the side in a position to lose a match they should have otherwise won comfortably given the dominance in other areas of the ground. Goal-kicking will undoubtedly be a focus at training this week after the performance, with some very gettable goals going begging due to poor execution. 

Sexton Shines 

2018 was no fluke for Alex Sexton. After scoring a career-high 28 goals last season to top the club’s goal-kickers list, Sexton hasn’t slowed down. He’s started the year with eight goals in his two games and is currently leading the Coleman Medal count after two rounds.

Those eight goals could have been more as well, with Sexton missing a couple of set shots amongst some wayward field kicks to finish with five behinds on Sunday. He doesn’t look like slowing down soon, and Sexton could be on his way to beating his own personal best again in 2019.

The SUNS will travel to Melbourne next weekend to take on the Western Bulldogs at Marvel Stadium on Sunday.

The club was able to topple the Dogs in the JLT Community Series and will be taking plenty of confidence into the match after last week’s win.