Another week, another couple of injuries and another set of club imposed suspensions. It has been the tale of the season to date for the Gold Coast SUNS, an ongoing frustration for Rodney Eade and the coaching staff who simply have no way of building continuity.
 
Two more players succumbed to injury against Hawthorn in Tasmania last weekend, with Jack Martin (hamstring) and Alex Sexton (hip flexor) both set to spend some time on the sidelines with grade-two strains respectively.
 
Had Martin not been injured in the 53-point loss to Hawthorn at Aurora Stadium, he would have missed the Sydney game anyway, with him and key forward Charlie Dixon being suspended for breaching alcohol protocols in Tasmania.
 
Despite the reserves' disappointing performance in the NEAFL against NT Thunder, a handful of players have put their hands up for selection in the senior team for this weekend’s clash with Sydney at Metricon Stadium.
 
Former Swan Nick Malceski is in line to return against his old side after successfully getting through his first game back from a knee injury that has ravaged his maiden season in Carrara. The 2014 All Australian defender collected 22 disposals and six rebound 50s across three quarters of game time to mount his case for an immediate recall to Eade’s side.
 
For the second week in a row, wingman Matt Shaw collected plenty of the ball to put his name firmly in the mix for a senior game against the Swans. In Darwin, Shaw gathered 33 possessions, five tackles and four inside 50s. After accumulating 38 possessions a week earlier, the inaugural SUN could return for Sexton this weekend.
 
Greg Broughton also responded in emphatic fashion for a second successive week with another dependable performance down back. The former Docker tallied 23 disposals, five marks and five tackles and could be given another chance to get his stop-start season back up and running in the ones.
 
After a quiet fortnight, Zac Smith returned to form against NT Thunder with a promising performance in the NEAFL. Smith gave the SUNS midfield division first use of the ball, collecting 28 hitouts as well as 12 disposals. With Tom Nicholls in strong form and Keegan Brooksby debuting last week, it may be a tough task for Smith to break back into the line up for the Sydney game.
 
Peter Wright continues to edge closer to a debut following another encouraging performance in the NEAFL. He has been allowed the liberty to develop in the reserves, but with a couple of strong performance in succession, last year’s pick No. 8 may well be edging closer to a maiden appearance at AFL level. Wright gathered 16 disposals, five marks and kicked 1.2 in Darwin. With Dixon unavailable for selection this week, Wright might just come in to support Tom Lynch in attack.