The Gold Coast SUNS pushed Carlton all the way to the line on Saturday afternoon, but it wasn’t enough to get the four points at Marvel Stadium.

Pressure forward Sean Lemmens played his second senior game since returning from an ankle injury and fought hard all day with more time in the midfield.

Speaking to SUNS Media post-match, Lemmens said Gold Coast’s method in Round 18 was a lot better than in the previous two games.

“Tonight I think we got back to our brand of footy,” Lemmens said.

“We brought our rip and pressure and contested footy and we’ve been trying to get back to that.

“It was good to see it tonight, we just didn’t get the result unfortunately.”

The SUNS were competitive for most of the match, but allowed Carlton to build momentum in crucial times which Lemmens said needed to improve. 

“I think that’s the main thing, when you do hit those lulls it’s about mentally being strong and getting back to it,” Lemmens said. 

“It’s good to be back playing football with my mates but like I said we’ve got to respond next week and go again.”

The SUNS take on Essendon next Sunday at Metricon Stadium, with Lemmens stating the focus will remain the same for the home clash.

“Exactly the same as this game, we’ve got to get back to that contested footy as we did and our identity as we know is hard and tough.”