2015 will go down as the most difficult year in the Gary Ablett dossier. It was a season marred by serious injury and for the first time in his career, his football wasn’t able to do the talking for him.
 
After playing in the opening two rounds of the season against Melbourne and St Kilda, the dual Brownlow medallist was ruled out for a prolonged period, which ended up becoming a guessing game. As his absence extended and the SUNS season went from bad to worse, the calls for him to return underdone grew louder.
 
By the time he did return in round 14 against North Melbourne, Gold Coast’s season had been dragged through the mud, both on and off field. But that didn’t stop the eight-time All Australian from producing breath-taking performances.
 
Ablett missed 11 games after his short-lived return from a highly publicised shoulder reconstruction, but despite the level of difficulty, he overcame a slow start to pull a rabbit out of the hat in the second-half.
 
Despite brutal pressure, due to controversy engulfing the club at the time, Ablett put on an absolute master class, particularly in the final term. He finished with 31 possessions, 11 clearances and three goals in an effort saturated with class. Although North Melbourne tagger Ben Jacobs tried his best to shackle Ablett, the champion burnt him, to defy the odds in a memorable performance that helped steer the SUNS to just their second win of the campaign.
 
A week later, after demonstrating his unbelievable talent once again, Ablett followed up his eye-catching return with another dependable performance against the Western Bulldogs in Cairns. He wasn’t quite as damaging as the week earlier, but he collected another 30 possession haul to go with 750 metres of gained territory and eight inside 50s.
 
For the third consecutive week, Ablett continued his remarkable comeback with a best on ground performance against Greater Western Sydney at Metricon Stadium. The three-time Club Champion was not only at his ball winning best, collecting 30 possessions, but he also did damage when he didn’t have the ball. Ablett record a new club record 17 tackles in a stunning performance that highlighted the status of his shoulder.
 
Unfortunately, less than a quarter into the game a week later at Adelaide Oval, disaster struck, with Ablett suffering a knee injury after an innocuous incident with Matt Shaw. The medial ligament injury brought a premature close to a frustrating season for the veteran midfielder. Just like that, he returned to the medical ward, with football done for the year.
 
Despite only managing six appearances for the year, and one that lasted less than 30 minutes, Ablett still polled heavily enough in three games to finish an astonishing ninth in the Club Champion. Hard to believe, but also indicative of the enormous injury toll at the Gold Coast SUNS this year.
 
At the time of his knee injury, Ablett said it might be a blessing in disguise, as it would allow him to spend more time on his shoulder to improve its condition ahead of 2016. Gold Coast will be seeking a fully fit Ablett to re-join the likes of David Swallow, Dion Prestia and Jaeger O’Meara next season as they hold the keys to an improved performance, and perhaps a maiden finals appearance.