DEW SET TO WIELD AXE
GOLD Coast coach Stuart Dew has warned that heads will roll after his side’s AFL capitulation against Carlton.
Just seven days after a stirring upset of Sydney, the Suns were outworked by the lastplaced Blues in a performance midfielder Touk Miller admitted was laced with complacent efforts.
Carlton dominated after a three-goal Suns burst to begin the Metricon Stadium clash as the AFL’s rising star Patrick Cripps orchestrated the cellardwellers’ second win of the season.
Dew would have hoped his young side had turned a corner after running down the Swans at the SCG but instead it was back to the drawing board in what’s been a frustrating first season at the helm.
The result compounds the pressure on the Suns, who are bracing for the exit of star forward Tom Lynch and the possibility of losing other established off-contract players next year, including marquee midfielder David Swallow and Lynch’s cocaptain Steven May.
“We’re trying to bridge the gap from such a really good win last week and it probably sums up the maturity of the group, or lack of, being able to deal with such a high and to come back down and reset,” Dew said. “On the back of tonight ... we’ll have to make some unforced changes.”
Miller said Dew’s postgame address produced some concerning feedback.
“(Dew asked for) just a simple yes or no ... did you prepare and play to win?” Miller told the club’s website.
“Interesting results as to what came out. You could see that we’re not on the same page ... we didn’t work hard enough and just rolled up.”
While promising changes, the coach said the club couldn’t afford to be “too reactive” to the loss and that the final four weeks of the season would be telling.
“Consistency’s been our battle ... last week we played three and a half (good quarters), this week 12 minutes,” he said. “It’s disappointing but a sign of where we’re at.”