By Jason Phelan 
 

Gold Coast SUNS coach Guy McKenna says Gary Ablett's longer than expected playing time over the first two rounds, not his social activities, was behind the skipper's inability to lead the side against Melbourne last Sunday.

Ablett attracted criticism after he stayed in Melbourne until the Tuesday after Gold Coast SUNS round three clash against the Western Bulldogs on Saturday, April 9.

The 26-year-old didn't enjoy an ideal preparation for the GC SUNS maiden AFL campaign after he struggled to overcome a calf injury in the latter stages of the pre-season.

He was pulled out of last week's team with general soreness, sparking speculation he had not paid proper attention to his recovery after the loss to the Bulldogs, which McKenna said was way off the mark.

"If you report injured after a game you'd be on the plane home," McKenna said on Tuesday.

"He didn't report injured after the game. He had a media commitment, he stayed after the game and we were well aware of it.

"He reported sore at our first major training session and that happens.

"I think every move Gary's made in his footy life he's always been questioned and a lot of times I think unfairly."

Despite his limited preparation Ablett played about 95 per cent of the GC SUNS first two matches, which McKenna admitted was more than had been budgeted for the Brownlow medallist.

"Probably as a match committee we've had to scratch our heads," he said. 

"I remember [seeing] the numbers … and [thinking] 'Maybe we helped in cooking him at some stage'. We'll certainly put our hands up for that … everyone has just blamed Gary and his social activities.

"[The amount of game time played] is something that we have to address and we're conscious of that with the kids, but we should be looking at blokes who haven't had big pre-seasons as well."

The scrutiny of Ablett has been intensified by Gold Coast SUNS turbulent start to the season which has seen the fledgling club lose its first three games by an average of 93 points.

While admitting his club's start has less than ideal, McKenna said external criticism would not cause the GC SUNS to falter in the pursuit of their long-term strategy.

"With our lack of continuity through the pre-season it's a big ask for these lads to just gel like that. It's going to take time," he said.

"We have our plans in place. We going to stick to our list build, we're going to stick to our style of football and we're going to stick to the rotation policy with our young kids."