Gold Coast SUNS key forward Tom Lynch produced another vintage performance to be rewarded with the Marcus Ashcroft medal in Saturday night’s 14-point win over Brisbane at the Gabba.
 
For the third consecutive week, Lynch was unstoppable from the opening bounce, plucking contested grabs and kicking important goals to lead Gold Coast to victory against the Lions.
 
The 22-year-old finished with 18 possessions at an elite efficiency rate of 89 per cent, to go with nine marks – five taken inside 50 – and an equal career-best haul of five goals, to collect eight out of nine votes for the best player on the ground prize.
 
Lynch got out of the blocks early, kicking two goals and having a hand in two others in the opening term. But it was after the main break that he and Charlie Dixon got off the leash, with the pair benefiting from more efficient ball use on transition in the second-half.
 
“It was good to get on the couple tonight. We focused on trying to get it (the ball) in quick, we felt like we had an advantage over them. I thought after half-time we probably did that better than what we did in the first half,” Lynch told SUNS RAW after Gold Coast’s QClash win.
 
Dixon was well held by Brisbane full back Daniel Merrett in the opening half, but fought back in the second half to have a say in the outcome. The big-bodied key forward finished the night with three goals and seven marks to combine with Lynch for eight majors and 16 grabs to underline their potency.
 
Despite keeping the game at arms length for most of the second half, Gold Coast weren’t able to run away from Brisbane in a scrappy affair that Lynch admitted wasn’t near the SUNS' best football.
 
“They stuck with us the whole time. It would be a bit nicer to play better, we were a bit scrappy, but a win’s a win. We’ll take that away. It took four quarters to shake them, so it was good,” Lynch said.
 
With an eight-day break ahead of Richmond at the MCG on Sunday afternoon, Gold Coast has an opportunity to recuperate before facing a finals-bound Tigers outfit at the home of football, in what looms as an enormous test for an undermanned SUNS.
 
“We don’t play at the ‘G often, so all the boys get excited when we do. It’s a great ground, especially Richmond – they’re in great form. We’ll go down there, give it our all and hopefully get the win,” Lynch said.