The Gold Coast SUNS reserves went down to the Mt Gravatt Vultures in Round 1 of the NEAFL at Broadbeach on Saturday.
The GC SUNS reserves got off to a good start, leading the Vultures by 3 points at the first break.
The Vultures steadied in the second term and then ran away with the match in the second half defeating the GS SUNS reserves by 28 points.
Hart is hoping the GC SUNS will build on their first solid hit-out.“We were struggling to keep our legs above the ground for parts of that second half (last week),” he said. “We developed a bit of cramping, and they (Mt Gravatt) worked their way through the heat and first round better than we did.
“We have got some match fitness into the players, they have come through unscathed, and we are working our ways towards making sure we manage them well from here.
”The GC SUNS reserves will travel to Darwin this weekend to play NT Thunder on Saturday night at TIO Stadium. The Darwin heat will be another test for the GC SUNS, who played on the hotter day of the opening round weekend, although the Thunder will have leg-weariness issues after playing in heavy conditions last Saturday night.
Ex-Thunder player Steven May was the GC SUNS best player against the Vultures and will play against his old side if not elevated to the GC SUNS seniors.
“Steven May’s form was fantastic,” Hart said. “He has played down forward but we sent him back to see how he’d go there.
“He was quite outstanding. He was not beaten from what I can tell.”
Hart was also pleased with the effort of ruckman Joel Tippett.
“When we played the game early on and used the ball, we played some really nice footy (but) we didn’t finish well,” Hart said.
“It was a good start because you could see there are players who want to play senior footy. They found that in the NEAFL are things they need to do to be able to get up there.
“Even at this level you learn what your limitations are and what you’ve got to work on.”
NEAFL Round 1, quarter by quarter Scores
Mt Gravatt 3.1 7.3 12.6 15.9.99
Gold Coast SUNS 3.4 5.8 7.10 10.11.71
Gold Coast SUNS
Goal Kickers: S. May 2, M. Shaw 2, R. AhChee , T. Hine , J. Crawford , S. Iles , L. Patrick , R. Thompson
Best Players: S. May, J. Tippett, M. Shaw, J. Crawford, S. Iles, M. Weller
Mt Gravatt
Goal Kickers: C. Smith 3, N. Gilliland 3, L. Scott 2, J. Furfaro , A. Proud , M. Pennington , D. Steven , G. Grose , J. Vearing , J. James
Best Players: C. Smith, J. James, A. Pirika, N. Gilliland, J. Vearing, A. Scott
For more information on the NEAFL visit www.neafl.com.au
