Joyce is locked, loaded
SUNS defender Jesse Joyce says his shock Round 1 omission was the wake-up call he needed to become a greater part of Gold Coast’s attack.
Joyce has been a staple member of the club’s best 22 over the past two years, playing 36 games at halfback.
But the 21-year-old was a notable exclusion from the Suns’ Round 1 side that lost to St Kilda by a point.
A back injury to George Horlin-Smith opened the door for what he conceded was a lucky elevation to the senior side for Round 2.
“It was a surprise (to miss Round 1). It was something I didn’t expect,” Joyce said. “In hindsight I did have a disrupted pre-season post-Christmas.
“I missed about four weeks of match simulation with a knee complaint. That is a really important time where I lost a lot of momentum.
“I knew pre-Christmas I had a really solid building block and had to unleash that.”
Joyce played in a preseason game for the club’s reserves against QAFL side Palm Beach Currumbin on the weekend of Gold Coast’s Round 1 AFL game.
He was pencilled in to captain the reserves in a NEAFL pre-season game against Brisbane as a curtain-raiser to the Suns’ Round 2 match against Fremantle at Metricon Stadium before a back injury to Horlin-Smith saw him elevated to the senior side after warming up with the reserves.
Suns coach Stuart Dew told Joyce his defence wasn’t an issue but he needed to contribute more with ball in hand.
“I was in constant contact (with Dew) in the couple weeks beforehand on why I had been dropped and where he wants me to get to,” he said.
“It was really clear I needed to get my hands on the footy more because that is one of my strengths.
“I had my defensive side sorted but if I’m not getting my hands on the footy then I’m not impacting the game the way I need to.”