Port Adelaide legend Kane Cornes says 2022 has been yet another disappointment for Gold Coast despite some positive development.
Speaking on AFL’s The Round So Far Cornes explained why he thinks it was another failed year for the Suns.
“It's probably not (a pass). I thought about this long and hard and finals would’ve been a pass for me so they haven’t done that,” he said.
“At what point are they going to get that and jump to that level? From the position, they were in throughout the season, particularly just over halfway when you thought they were in contention (for finals), and once again their season petered out and they’ve had some disappointing performances.
“I think they're on the right track, provided they don’t have a mass exodus of players again the Rankine one is going to hurt.”
The 300-gamer was glowing in his assessment of medium forward Alex Sexton and was confused at his lack of game time in 2022.
The 28-year-old played the first three games of the year (Round 1 as the unused sub) before being dropped until Round 23 where he slotted a career-high six goals.
Cornes believes the 158-gamer should explore potential options elsewhere to increase his opportunity at AFL level.
“I don’t know why he's been stuck in the VFL, every time I watch him play, I think there's something about him,” he said.
“He’s second all-time for Gold Coast goal kickers behind Tom Lynch.
“He’s contracted next season but if I was him, I’d be looking for other opportunities, albeit Izaak Rankine goes to Adelaide you would think. He’s far too good to spend the majority of the year in the VFL and he showed that again.”
The Suns will finish 2022 in 12th on the AFL ladder with a 10-12 record.
That 12th placed finish equals the club's previous best result which came in 2014 while their percentage of 102.4 is the first time the club has cracked triple figures.