250 engaged Gold Coast SUNS members attended Thursday night’s inaugural pie night at Metricon Stadium in a captivating night for the football club.
 
Chairman John Witheriff, chief executive officer Andrew Travis, senior coach Rodney Eade and captain Gary Ablett all addressed the audience during the evening with a wide range of topics up for discussion.
 
It has been a difficult year for the club, both on and off-field. There is no hiding from that fact and none of the club leaders chose to. Rather, Witheriff got on the front foot early to back the direction the club is taking in regards to the behaviour of some individuals that have tainted the clubs reputation in 2015.
 
The injury toll has bordered on crisis throughout Eade’s first year in Carrara, but instead of pointing the finger firmly at a never-before-seen injury plague, the veteran coach explained that the club had made the best out of a tough situation.
 
In adverse circumstances, Eade said the club has made significant in roads this season when it comes to professional standards and despite the volume of injuries, a large group of inexperienced players have had their development fast tracked.
 
Just this week, dual Brownlow medallist Ablett suffered a season-ending knee injury, bringing to a close a frustrating season for the star midfielder. The little master didn’t shy away from the fact the season has been extremely disappointing, but he is confident of starting the preseason fully fit with sufficient time now to get both his knee and his shoulder 100 per cent.
 
It has been a difficult first year for the new CEO, but with the worst hopefully in the past, Travis is satisfied with the steps the club has made to strengthen itself from a financial perspective. He alluded to a major announcement on the horizon, teasing the crowd of passionate supporters, but remained tight-lipped.
 
By the conclusion of the night, it appeared as the crowds dispersed that not only were supporters leaving with greater confidence in the club’s direction moving forward, they left with a strong connection to the club. The leadership group floated around throughout the night, signing autographs and mingling with a diverse range of supporters.