Victory a confidence-booster

CAIRNS junior Jarrod Harbrow says finding a way to win ugly will do wonders for a Gold Coast side trying to believe in itself.

The Suns defender was among the side’s best in torrential Cairns conditions against North Melbourne on the sodden Cazalys Stadium surface he grew up playing on.

Harbrow, who played his junior footy at the South Cairns Cutters, said the hard-earned win was important for the side’s confidence after two preseason victories had shown them what they were capable of.

“It’s pretty special. It was important that we took our preseason form and the trust that we’d built over the preseason into round one,” he told Fox Sports afterwards. “It’s good to get that belief and I think that builds confidence.”

The foundation Sun wasn’t at his usual run and gun best, instead playing within himself to suit the conditions.

He kicked all 21 times he had the ball as the Suns ground out a win in coach Stuart Dew’s first game in charge.

“It was not the night for that type of stuff, important to not be too fancy,” Harbrow said.

“It’s all about territory and basics; not a lot of run and dash, just stay safe and do the little things.”

He said Dew’s calming influence at the break helped the side steady in the final term.

Dew said spending plenty of time training in a wet Gold Coast preseason helped.

“We’ve had a bit of it lately, so they weren’t scared to get dirty,” he said.

The Suns play their first 10 games away from their Metricon Stadium home ground due to the Commonwealth Games, making the Cairns win especially crucial.