The little master reclaims centre stage

Gary Ablett’s return to football was always going to take centre stage regardless of how he performed. When you’re one of the greatest players to ever pick up a Sherrin and have missed so much football, interest levels were always going to be enormous. With the football world watching, the little master didn’t disappoint against North Melbourne. After a slow start, Ablett overcame the close attention of Ben Jacobs who trailed him around Metricon Stadium like a caravan. The dual Brownlow medallist finished the game with 31 possessions, 11 clearances and three goals on the back of 14 touches in the final stanza that reminded the football world of his mastery. It wasn’t quite the best of Ablett, rather a glimpse of his past. But, with his confidence building from his exposure to the game again, he will undoubtedly be better for the run.

Unstoppable Dixon acquires new club record with seven goals

The evolving tale of Charlie Dixon added another layer on Saturday night. The spearhead put on an absolute clinic against a North Melbourne defensive group that simply couldn’t find an answer for his unstoppable game. Dixon finished with a club record seven goals and it was the manner in which he hit the scoreboard that was most impressive. He took imposing contested grabs on Kangaroos full back Robbie Tarrant, marks full stretch on the lead and also did his damage on the ground. It was a full kit bag type of performance that continued his great season to date. And given Tarrant’s elevated standing in the game this season, his performance was on a quality opponent - a man credited with stopping Tom Hawkins, Jarryd Roughead and Travis Cloke already this year. Dixon’s 7.2 came from 15 possessions and five marks – all five were taken inside 50. Given the SUNS inability to impact the scoreboard this year, with a ranking of 18th prior to the round, 19 goals was a massive effort against last year’s preliminary finalists.

Dominant May leads from the back

It’s easy to be seduced by the ostentatious side of the game. The leather accumulators (Ablett) and the goal kickers (Dixon). But on Saturday night, Steven May produced his strongest showing of the year in a performance that saw him enter the top echelon of key defenders in the game last season. His numbers don’t leap off the stats sheet, but his influence was critical in securing four premiership points. Opposed to veteran key forward Drew Petrie, May beat his more experienced opponent time and time again, as well as rounding up other forwards and supporting his teammates. May finished with a whopping 14 spoils and six rebound 50s to be one of Rodney Eade’s key performers. Gold Coast’s back six has been under siege throughout 2015, with May, Nick Malceski and Rory Thompson missing large chunks of the year. The Northern Territorian’s return in the last couple of weeks has been a timely reminder of the calming effect he can have on those around him and just how crucial he is in conducting the defensive orchestra.

Second-year blues? Antithesis of Kolodjashnij's season

One of the main beneficiaries of the injury crisis this year has been Kade Kolodjashnij. Not only has he convincingly avoided the second-year blues; he has earmarked himself as a future leader of the football club. In the absence of May, Malceski and Thompson, Kolodjashnij had been delegated the role of defensive leader. For someone with so little experience and so young, you could have forgiven the Tasmanian for wilting under the added pressure. But the exact opposite has occurred. Kolodjashnij has stood up in the face of adversity, performing a quarter back style role to provide a plethora of drive from the defensive arc. The emergence of Adam Saad this season has provided dare and dash, whilst Kolodjashnij has provided poise and guidance that belies his inexperience. On Saturday night, when the game was there to be won in the opening half, Kolodjashnij was the architect once again. He collected 20 possessions by half-time, before finishing with 28 for the game, including 14 contested possessions and six rebound 50s. With May and Malceski back in the line up, expect the polished left footer to continue to flourish.

Added depth and class in the engine room a major boost for entire pit crew

For the duration of the season a common theme has been the class differential in the middle of the ground. With so much talent and experience missing this season, the return of Gary Ablett and David Swallow provided Gold Coast’s engine room with a timely dose of those two missing elements. Their influence can’t simply be measured by their own outputs, with the pair’s presence boosting a midfield department that has struggled to compete for the best part of 2015. Mitch Hallahan and Michael Rischitelli have had to shoulder much of the workload, as well as first-year surprise packet Touk Miller. On Saturday night, against quality opposition, the evolving Gold Coast midfield got the job done. There are still concerns on the SUNS ability to spread and run and carry, but with Harley Bennell and Jack Martin still to come back this area of concern should be eased in the coming weeks.