An increased work ethic is resulting in an increased output for Brandon Matera. It’s a simple evaluation. But in the last month, the West Australian is starting to reap the rewards for not only his improved aptitude for work on game day, but his application to his craft during the week.
 
In the wet on Saturday night, Matera produced one of the finest performances of his career to continue his late season surge. The creative small forward finished with an equal career-high 26 disposals, nine marks, six inside 50s and two goals to be one of Rodney Eade’s best in Gold Coast’s 37-point loss to Port Adelaide at Metricon Stadium.
 
Matera revealed that Eade had simplified things for him, building his game on work rate as starting point. A focus that has seen him turn his season around in the last couple of months and allowed him to wield more influence on the state of games.
 
“I’ve been doing a lot of extras during the week. Rocket’s been on my back for work rate,” Matera told SUNS RAW following Gold Coast’s loss on Saturday night.
 
“It’s been good to get up the ground a bit, play on the wing, which is forcing me to run a bit harder and stick with the better mids in the comp. It’s been a good learning curve for me and I’m loving it up there.
 
“He said all he wanted from me was work rate and effort. He said I’ve had a good eight weeks, but the first probably four weeks, I didn’t get much of the ball but I was in the right spots.
 
“He said it would turn one day and I was lucky enough to get a few touches tonight.”
 
The gulf in midfield class and experience has been a bridge too wide to pass at different times throughout 2015. Losing your top four midfielders for large chunks is a barrier near impossible to pass, no matter what club you are.
 
But despite a clear discrepancy on Saturday night, with Port Adelaide boasting a star-studded engine room, Matera said the midfield did their best in adverse circumstances to battle against an onball division that was loaded with All Australians.
 
“Port Adelaide have had a down season, but their last three weeks have been really good. It was a good test for us,” Matera said.
 
“We do have the personnel out, but the boys that were out there today gave it their all and you’ve just got to be happy with what they can give.
 
“The boys will be pretty sore after that one, it was a pretty hard much. But they fought it out well I thought.”