1. Captain David Swallow

With Gold Coast missing captains Tom Lynch and Steven May through injury, David Swallow lead the team on Saturday. Having been part of the club’s leadership group since 2014, the West Australian is a respected figure at the club for the way he goes about his footy. Swallow certainly stepped up to the plate, gathering 26 disposals, 17 contested possessions and six clearances. Meanwhile the Bulldogs also suffered their own leadership woes, with captain Easton Wood ruled out earlier in the week before vice-captain Marcus Bontempelli was a late withdrawal on game day. Midfielder Lachie Hunter skippered their side for the game.

2. Struggles to convert prove costly

The windy conditions made finding the target difficult at times and the SUNS struggled to deliver the ball effectively into their forward 50. Gold Coast converted 37% of their inside 50s into scoring shots, with coach Stuart Dew disappointed that the players were unable to get reward for effort. "Our effort is there, it's just our method and finish to get some reward for such hard work. We mentioned in the box at times, 'Gee, it's really hard work for us to score at the moment.' We just need to keep working on the connection.” Dew said.

3. SUNS keep the pressure on

Gold Coast are the best tackling side in the competition and on the weekend laid 91 tackles, led by 11 from rookie Nick Holman. The pressure was notable early in the game, with 23 tackles to the Bulldogs’ nine, with the SUNS’ intent resulting in a 12-2 free kick count at quarter time. Gold Coast’s pressure allowed them to match the outside game of the Dogs for three quarters, which wasn’t quite enough to get them over the line. "Credit to the Bulldogs, when the game was on the line, they cranked it up, both contested and uncontested. Up until then, we thought we’d matched their uncontested game, which we had focused on early, but we couldn’t go with them in the end" Dew said.

4. Does the AFL have a new cult hero?

Even before the first bounce, Gold Coast debutant Brayden Crossley was attracting plenty of attention. The 18-year-old sports an impressive moustache – which has drawn comparisons to former Demon Nathan Carroll – and he certainly made an impact during his first game. Buoyed by support from family and friends who travelled south from the Gold Coast, Crossley went about his business with great energy and enthusiasm as he collected 13 disposals, seven hit-outs and kicked his first goal in AFL footy. The youngster also used his considerable size to assert himself on the game, laying a crunching bump on Toby McLean in the first quarter.