It's a fortnight into the AFL season and the Queensland sides' pre-season optimism has quickly faded away.
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Brisbane Lions vice captain Dayne Zorko was brutal in his assessment of Brisbane's second round loss to North Melbourne, while the Suns are 0-2 against sides that were pencilled in as also-rans before round one.
It's not so much the results but the margins and inconsistency of the Lions and Suns in the wake of all the hype that has hurt them.
Attitude
Zorko said the Lions' attitude could certainly have been a factor in their game against North Melbourne and it was a buzzword for the Suns in the aftermath of their week one loss to Melbourne. "We got beaten at the contest, beaten in contested football, weren't prepared to lay tackles, no pressure," Zorko said. "There's a number of things there we set ourselves to win on the night and we didn't even win one." Gold Coast may have fallen victim to reading their own press over summer and their attitude improved in the second round.
Intensity
Despite having less of the football, the Lions just edged North Melbourne in the tackle count (55-53), while the Suns were beaten by the Saints in that area (53-66). Obviously, tackling is a a key indicator of defensive pressure, regardless of where on the ground they are.
Forward targets
A key forward is still the most valuable and rare commodity in an AFL side. The Lions still don't have a Jonathan Brown heir apparent and both had bags kicked against them in round two. Dan McStay has competed hard but can't do it on his own. For the Gold Coast, Tom Lynch's return loomed as crucial on the weekend, though he wasn't all that effective against Sam Fisher.
Efficiency
Suns coach Rodney Eade said it best after Saturday night's game, describing his team's ball use as horrific. Overusing handball put the Suns under pressure against St Kilda and cost them turnovers. The Suns actually won the contested football count but butchered their final kicks into the forward 50, with only half as many grabs inside their 50. It was a telling stat in round one that Brisbane's Dayne Beams had 33 disposals and just seven kicks. Making ground is key.
Injuries
It's not the 'what' but the 'who' of injuries with the Lions and Suns. Gold Coast captain Gary Ablett has said publicly he is playing below 100 per cent. Brisbane is without Tom Rockliff and Pearce Hanley. The absence of Daniel Merrett proved a major hole in the Lions' defence on Sunday as Jarrad waite booted seven. Effort was most certainly there from Justin Clarke but he was outsized by the more experienced Waite. The loss of Jaeger O'Meara has already been telling for the Suns as well. Brisbane had another blow with Michael Close ruled out on Monday afternoon for the rest of the season. The extent of Sun Jarrod Harbrow's shoulder injury is yet to be confirmed.
It's not all bad for the two sides. For the Lions, Daniel Rich has been superb in his return from a ruptured ACL while the Suns trio of first-years in Jarrod Garlett, Adam Saad and Touk Millerhave shown promising signs. On the other end of the scale, veteran Michael Rischitelli has led the way for the Gold Coast.
It may yet be a fruitful winter for the Queensland AFL teams but they're both going to need to turn it around fast.