Suns face spotlight
Melbourne trip gives Kolodjashnij taste of fame in footy-mad city
LIVING life as a footballer in the AFL fishbowl that is Melbourne has been an eye opening experience for Gold Coast Suns player Kade Kolodjashnij.
It took less than a day for Kolodjashnij to discover the vast differences between the level of exposure in the footy bubble in Victoria and the relative obscurity players enjoy in Queensland during the club’s week-long visit to Melbourne.
“Someone actually pulled me aside and asked for a photo in a supermarket,” Kolodjashnij said.
“They weren’t a Suns fan, just a football fan. It was quite a shock because it hasn’t really happened before.”
Kolodjashnij’s surprise experience was the norm for AFL players who represent Melbournebased clubs.
Even the likes of Suns captain and dual-Brownlow medallist Gary Ablett can get around the Gold Coast most of the time without someone having a second glance at him.
It was a surreal experience for Tasmanian product Kolodjashnij who highlighted the heightened level of media exposure and even the troubles of getting to training at Carlton’s Ikon Park.
“It’s be different and it’s good to get an insight into what it’s like to be in the AFL in Melbourne,” Kolodjashnij said.
“The amount of people at our media session was huge compared to the Gold Coast and you pick up the paper and there is seven pages of AFL footy.
“Even the traffic in the morning to get to training was hectic. What would have taken 10 minutes on the Gold Coast took us about 30-40 minutes on the bus.”
Kolodjashnij said while it was a good experience, it made him appreciate his life and warmer weather on the Gold Coast.
The Suns will top off their trip south by taking on the AFL’s biggest club, Collingwood, at Etihad Stadium.
Gold Coast won’t be featuring in the finals but despite having a host of young players in the side and nothing to lose, Kolodjashnij said they wouldn’t be throwing out the playbook in favour of experimenting on some new tactics ahead of next year.