Gold Coast SUNS coach Rodney Eade is confident the young crop of blossoming stars under his watchful eye will become far less reliant on captain Gary Ablett this season.
 
Given the age profile of the list at Metricon Stadium – third youngest in the competition at an average age of 23 years and 23 days – any developing club would be as reliant on a player of Ablett’s ilk. You could even argue almost every club would be dependant on the dual Brownlow medallist who is perhaps the best footballer to ever pick up a Sherrin.
 
Eade is assured in his belief that the developing wave of talent at his disposal will become increasingly confident in their ability to collect all four premiership points without the presence of the little master.
 
“I think that we have been a young group, we’re still a young group, and Gary obviously when he’s not playing the results show there’s a bit of a reliance on him,” Eade told Melbourne radio station SEN on Tuesday evening.
 
“I think we’ve just got to develop. There’s a lot of talented players there, but if we learn the right way and train hard enough, I’ve got no doubt that we won’t rely on Gary.
 
“Having said that, he’s an exceptional player so even at 33, 34, he’s going to have a really strong influence on the result at times because of his ability.

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“But, I think if he’s not playing at any particular stage, the other players have got to have confidence and belief that they can win games.”

On the eve of the final dress rehearsal of the pre-season, Ablett has been ruled out of the encounter with the Brisbane Lions despite his shoulder being structurally sound.
 
Eade explained the medical staff believe the three-time SUNS club champion requires more exposure to contact drills before he makes his return to the field. With more than two week remaining before round one, the coach is still hopeful his most valuable asset will play against Melbourne on the MCG.
 
“We were hopeful that he’d play this week. The medical staff along with Gary just feel that he hasn’t done enough contact work at this stage,” Eade said.
 
“It’s (his shoulder) really strong, he’s done all the training, except the competitive aspect. He’s joined in competitive handball games in the last week or so; he’s done a little bit of tackling.
 
“The medical staff just feel that he needs a little bit more strength and a couple of range of movements and also be able to do those movements under match conditions or training conditions.
 
“We’ve still got two and half more weeks, so we are still reasonably hopeful that he will be able to play round one.”