1. Finals no certainty
Sydney are still one, or maybe two victories away from guaranteeing a place in the eight. And while they are almost certain to take part in September, their run home is among the AFL's toughest. The Swans still have to play Essendon (away), Collingwood (home), Melbourne (away), Greater Western Sydney (Spotless Stadium) and Hawthorn (home). They will need to perform a lot better than they did on Saturday to get the points in those.
3. Sydney's streak ends
Gold Coast had never beaten the Swans going into this game. The Suns also had an average losing margin of 55 points in their nine defeats to Sydney. Not anymore. Since the Suns entered the league in 2011, Sydney have made the finals every year and also won a a flag. In that time, it's hard to imagine two clubs with more different records, and at such different ends of the ladder. Saturday's 24-point upset was the kind of result Gold Coast can build a culture around.
4. Buddy badly beaten
It's not something you see often, but Lance Franklin was beaten. His direct opponent Rory Thompson wore him like a glove, and competed incredibly well in the rare occasions he was caught one-on-one with the Swans superstar. Buddy worked hard and still had 15 touches but many of them were a long way up the ground. It was the first time he had been held goalless this year. With five rounds to play he trails North Melbourne spearhead Ben Brown by eight goals in the Coleman Medal race.
5. Sydney's home headache
The Swans have now lost more home games than they've won this year – something equal parts unusual and worrying for a team in finals contention. They're now 4-5 at the SCG and with games against Collingwood (round 20) and Hawthorn (round 23) to come there, that record could get worse. The Swans have already lost to Port Adelaide, Adelaide, North Melbourne and Geelong at home this season, although Saturday's defeat was by far the most concerning. In the words of Ross Lyon: "It's not ideal."
