Brutal honesty and open appraisals are nothing new in football clubs. But after a dismal start to a season that appeared so promising, the playing group at the Gold Coast SUNS have undertaken a frank meeting to get to the bottom of the lack of effort displayed in three of the opening four games of 2015.
 
The leaders inside Metricon Stadium were left searching for reasons behind the lack of effort and desire displayed once again on Saturday night against Greater Western Sydney in Canberra.
 
Just a week after appearing to put their season back on the right path, the SUNS' performance against fellow expansion outfit GWS went a long way to suggesting the club is some way off playing finals football.
 
SUNS spearhead Tom Lynch revealed the playing group had a productive discussion as part of their review process following the 66-point loss to the Giants – a margin which could have been far more humiliating had the game’s youngest franchise not been so wasteful in front of goal.
 
“We had a good meeting yesterday, players spoke to each other and told each other some good honest feedback and some home truths. I think that was productive. We’ve definitely been speaking about it and had a good discussion,” Lynch told reporters at Metricon Stadium on Tuesday.
 
“I think you’ve got to speak about it (lack of effort) and give honest feedback. But at the end of the day, we’ve got to do it on the weekend.
 
“There’s no point Monday to Friday talking about doing it and then not doing it. This weekend’s important that we go out there and provide that effort, put in place what we’re trying to do.”
 
In the last decade, confronting honesty sessions have gone down in football folklore. Some clubs have attributed them as the turning point in on-field fortunes. Hence the establishment of leadership building enterprise Leading Teams.
 
No matter what your job is, telling another person that their performance is not up to standard is a difficult thing to do. But, as Dion Prestia told the media on Tuesday, feedback from peers can be extremely powerful and is just a part of being a professional footballer. Although providing direct, candid feedback is hard, the ball magnet explained it’s vital in helping with development and getting the side’s form back on track.
 
“It means a lot more coming from the playing group, you don’t want to let your mate down. I think we’re a pretty close group,” Prestia said.
 
“It might be a bit hard to tell your mate they’re doing something wrong, but I think we’re all pretty close and if you take it on board and work for them. It’s just improving each other.”