An emphatic eight-goal third quarter paved the way for Gold Coast to roar into the top four when the side met the Western Bulldogs in round ten at Metricon Stadium.
It was all smiles when the SUNS took on a Bulldogs outfit earlier this year, with the home side breaking the game wide open following the half-time break, kicking eight goals to one in a riveting third quarter display.
And Gold Coast did it all with a less-than-prolific performance from Gary Ablett, who by his own lofty standards, was kept relatively quiet by Bulldog tagger Liam Picken.
While the game’s best player finished the contest with 24 possessions, the extra attention paid to “Gaz” gave his younger teammates an opportunity to stand up.
Midfield tyro Dion Prestia put on a master class, stamping his dominance as one of the game’s most promising up-and-comers with a sensational 35 possession, six-mark performance.
Matt Shaw also featured among the SUNS best, finishing with 23 disposals and a goal.
Vice-captain Tom Lynch and key forward partner Charlie Dixon thrived with ample supply, the powerhouse forwards kicking four goals respectively.
Small forwards Brandon Matera (three), Harley Bennell (two) and Luke Russell (two) were also influential in front of goal.
The 45-point win notched Gold Coast’s fifth consecutive celebration, moving them to third-place behind Port Adelaide and Geelong at the time.
Guy McKenna was pleased with his team’s performance.
"A win's a win, that's what you have to do," he said.
"The most pleasing thing out of the game … was we thought our way through a game of football."
Despite the victory, the SUNS were made to sweat for the following 24 hours with Gary Ablett coming under the scrutiny of the Match Review Panel for contact made against opponent Liam Picken.
Thankfully, the AFL released its findings on the following Monday and deemed Ablett had no case to answer.
GOLD COAST 4.0 7.2 15.9 18.11 (119)
WESTERN BULLDOGS 3.3 5.8 6.10 10.14 (74)
GOALS
Gold Coast: Dixon 4, Lynch 4, Matera 3, Bennell 2, Russell 2, Swallow, Lynch, Smith
Western Bulldogs: Tutt 2, Cooney 2, Giansiracusa 2, Murphy, Stevens, Griffen, Dahlhaus
BEST
Gold Coast: Lynch, Shaw, Harbrow, Prestia, Ablett,
Western Bulldogs: Griffen, Cooney, Picken, Dahlhaus, Macrae
INJURIES
Gold Coast: Nil
Western Bulldogs: Nil
SUBSTITUTES
Gold Coast: Sean Lemmens on for Sam Day in the fourth quarter.
Western Bulldogs: Daniel Giansiracusa on for Brett Goodes in the third quarter.
Reports: Cooney (high contact)
Umpires: Fisher, Nicholls and Ryan
Official crowd: 14,235 at Metricon Stadium
