His homecoming to Perth did not pan out as hoped, but David Swallow put in his second standout performance of the new season in Gold Coast’s 48-point loss to Fremantle on Saturday night.

The GC SUNS confirmed the 21-year-old’s re-signing during the week, and with his immediate future settled, the West Australian was again amongst his club’s best in the wet in Perth.

He finished with a team high 27 possessions – 16 of those contested – on a night when the young SUNS outfit was tested in the clinches by a more experienced and physically bigger Fremantle side.

Despite his strong individual performance, Swallow was left with a bitter taste in his mouth after the home side blew the game out in a lacklustre final term. 

“I probably drifted in that last quarter a bit, probably like most of the team” Swallow said.

“Bit disappointed with the last quarter but the first three, not too bad.”

The conditions were tailor-made for the Dockers and ruckman Aaron Sandilands had plenty of opportunities to get his hands on the ball as he finished with a career high 58 hit-outs.

Despite the Dockers’ dominance in the ruck, the SUNS’ midfield still managed to gain six more clearances than their opponents throughout the game.

“I thought the boys were terrific most of the game,” Swallow said.

“We talked about bringing effort before the game and that consistency.

“We tried to play one-on-one across the field and I think we managed to do that most of the night.

“Probably that last quarter, Fremantle’s experience maybe just got on top of us a little bit.”