After a bleak and difficult season at the Gold Coast SUNS, opportunities present on the horizon to salvage something from a season that has only yielded two wins from seventeen rounds.
 
The month ahead begins with a fearsome West Coast outfit who travel to Metricon Stadium on the back of six consecutive wins including a brilliant performance against an undermanned Sydney side last weekend.
 
The Eagles have been the surprise story of the season, especially given the performance of their back six that has coped exceptionally well during adverse circumstances this year due to injuries to key players Eric McKenzie and Mitch Brown, as well as recent retirements of former captains Beau Waters and Darren Glass.
 
The Brisbane game the following week presents the SUNS' best opportunity of the run home to post another victory. Gold Coast will travel up the highway to face the Lions at the Gabba in a fortnight – a side that has enjoyed as little success as the SUNS this season with just two wins to go with a dismal season.
 
In round 20, Rodney Eade’s side will travel to Victoria for the final time this season to face a Richmond outfit who are currently in the hunt for a top four finish for the first time since 2001. The Tigers can’t afford to waste their chances ahead of September so will undoubtedly make life extremely difficult for the SUNS at the MCG in mid-August.
 
Essendon awaits the SUNS in the penultimate home game of the season. James Hird’s side has endured another season of controversy which appears to have affected their on-field performance throughout the season, resulting in just five wins for the year. The Bombers underwhelming season presents another opportunity for Gold Coast to register another win this year.