Gold Coast has begun their new reign under coach Stuart Dew with a win over North Melbourne, in what was a wet and wild clash at Cazaly's Stadium.
Torrential rain brought on by Cyclone Nora inundated Cairns with approximately an inch of rain 45 minutes prior to the start of the match, resulting in the low-scoring 7.13 (55) to 5.7 (39) affair.
All 12 goals for the game were scored from the one end of the ground, with the Suns narrowly snatching the win with two final quarter goals from Jack Bowes and Jarryd Lyons.
Although both teams were given the option of delaying the match until the rain eased, neither one took up the offer and battled on a ground which resembled more of a water park than a football oval.
The torrid conditions kept scores low in the first quarter, with the only goal coming off the boot of Shaun Higgins at the 18-minute mark of the term.
Despite their solitary goal, the Roos outplayed the Suns in the miserable conditions, winning the contested possession count 40-49 and limiting their opposition to 0.2.
But as the rain relented and the ground drained, the Gold Coast shone with an unanswered five goals.
While North had the ball in their attacking half of the ground for the first part of the term, three successive behinds allowed the Suns to re-emerge and steal the lead.
Darcy Macpherson got the ball rolling for the Suns, before Ben Ainsworth joined the party with two of his own.
Alex Sexton booted his first soon thereafter, before Aaron Young in his first game made it five goals for the Suns.
With a 24-point advantage at the end of the first half and conversion for the Roos difficult, the Suns seemed set on securing their maiden win under Stuart Dew.
But the Kangaroos thought otherwise.
Moving Jack Ziebell up forward proved to be a Brad Scott masterstroke as the skipper slotted two goals for the term to wrestle the Roos back into the game.
Subsequent majors to Jed Anderson and Trent Dumont brought North back to within a single point by the end of the third quarter as the Suns only managed to add two to their tally.
While the four-goal turnaround had gave North Melbourne a sniff, they knew it would be a tough ask to wrangle back the lead - a feat which would require them to convert from the non-scoring end of the ground.
Yet it wasn't to be as the Roos remained goalless opposed to the Suns' 2.5 with the ball remaining in their forward half for majority of the quarter.
The return of the rain further dampened the spirits of the resilient Roos, as the Suns capitalised with 54 clearances and won the inside 50 count 67-47.
Although North had their chances to convert, the initial flurry of behinds from the Suns proved to be enough to get them over the line.
Late goals to hometown hero Jack Bowes and Jarryd Lyons sealed the win as the Suns emerged victorious by 16 points.
Despite the terrible weather, David Swallow thrived in the wet, amassing 32 disposals - 14 of which were contested - as well as seven inside 50s.
With the Suns outworking the Kangaroos in the unfavourable conditions, Stuart Dew's men proved there will be plenty on the horizon in the weeks to come.
Gold Coast will travel to Etihad Stadium next Saturday afternoon to play the lively Carlton, while North Melbourne will face off against St Kilda in the Good Friday clash following a six-day turnaround.
GOLD COAST 0.2 5.6 5.8 7.13 (55)
NORTH MELBOURNE 1.2 1.6 5.7 5.9 (39)
GOALS
Gold Coast: Ainsworth 2, Young, Lyons, Bowes, Sexton, Macpherson
North Melbourne: Ziebell 2, Higgins, Dumont, Anderson
BEST
Gold Coast: Bowes, Young, Miller, Martin, Harbrow, Ainsworth North Melbourne: Ziebell, Macmillan, Thompson, Clarke, Simpkin, Cunnington
INJURIES
Gold Coast: Nil
North Melbourne: Nil
TALKING POINTS
1. THE SUNS ARE RISING WITH STUART DEW AT THE HELM
A win on the board in his first game as head coach was crucial for Stuart Dew.
After much hype about how Gold Coast would fare following the departure of Gary Ablett, coupled with the culture issues and internal clashes within the club, Dew had a massive task on his hands to rectify the Suns.
Despite a scare in the third quarter, the Suns edged out their adversaries to give themselves the win which will set the tone for their future matches.
The sun has set on one era for the Gold Coast, but is now beginning to rise as a new age begins.
2. BOTH SIDES SHOULD HAVE PACKED THEIR BATHERS
If the Suns were worried about missing games at Metricon Stadium, they may as well have saved themselves the long trip to Cairns and instead played at Wet'n'Wild, only 15 minutes away from their home ground.
As tropical rains saturated the ground before play commenced, Cazaly's Stadium resembled a giant swimming pool, making it difficult for players get a hold of the ball, let alone keep their feet.
While wet conditions are a part of football and one players love to take part in, in this extremity, it's a wonder why the AFL opted for the game to be played at this time of the year in Cairns.
With an average rainfall of 360mm in March, maybe with Metricon Stadium unavailable due to the Commonweath Games, it would have been better for a slight fixture reschedule to accommodate for a higher standard of football.
And to avoid weather from a tropical cyclone.
3. TALL FORWARDS JUST CAN'T PLAY WELL IN THE WET
It's fair to say Ben Brown didn't have a good night out in the wet, mustering only four touches and failing to hit the scoreboard for the entire game.
Although Brown is normally North's key contributor on the scoreboard, given the conditions, it might have been best for the 200cm forward to sit the game out.
Then again, with Mason Wood, Thomas Murphy, Mitchell Hibberd and Majak Daw as the emergencies for the match - all of whom sit just below or well above 190cm - the Kangaroos didn't really give themselves the opportunity to go small to begin with.
That being said, Todd Goldstein was influential for the Roos in the centre of the ground, ending his night with 14 disposals and 35 hit-outs.
4. ZIEBELL CONTINUES TO BE A SPARK FOR NORTH
Entering his second season as skipper after a less-than-ideal 2017 for his team, Jack Ziebell continues to shine through the doom and gloom surrounding North Melbourne.
Ziebell starred in the wet, managing 21 disposals in the sodden conditions, as well as two critical majors following his move up forward in the third quarter.
If Ziebell has this much influence in the wet, once he gets his feet back on solid ground, he'll be directing the play as if reading from a script.
5. KUDOS TO CAIRNS FANS
Footy fans are passionate, there's no doubt about that.
Yet if cyclonic rains came hurtling down, it'd be safe to say there'd be a few diehards who'd pack their bags and return to see their team another day.
But as the heavens opened up just before the commencement of play, it did little to deter the Cairns footy faithful from watching the Suns and Roos slog it out in the wet.
To the 3722 fans in Cairns who braved the torrential rain and howling winds, we salute you.
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