Gold Coast’s Wil Powell says he and his teammates have been in awe of Damien Hardwick during his first pre-season as head coach.
The three-time premiership coach has been busy educating his players and implementing his successful game plan as the Suns chase their maiden finals berth.
Powell has been taken aback by Hardwick’s presence, admitting that he and his colleagues have been absorbing every little thing he has to say.
“He’s awesome,” Powell said of the former Richmond coach on SENQ Breakfast.
“It’s so good with a new coach and he’s got the runs on the board. Everyone is so eager to learn from him.
“Every time he stands in front of us and speaks it’s like, ‘wow, this bloke knows what he’s talking about’.
“The game plan he’s implemented is so exciting. It’s such an exciting brand of footy. We’ve been training really well and I think he’s starting to get really happy with the way we’re playing.
“It should be a very fun and exciting year for a finals berth.”
Hardwick has brought with him to the Gold Coast his distinctive game style that has been so successful and the way he teaches it really resonates with the playing group, says Powell.
“Offence, defence and contest is what it’s based on. We trust him from the get-go because he’s got the runs on the board,” he added.
“He teaches it as if you’re in school. He’s a really good teacher of the game plan, so it make it easy to go out and implement it.”
AFL Media’s Queensland correspondent Michael Whiting has been present at Carrara to observe Hardwick and the Suns this summer.
He says there is growing optimism that the expansion club can finally overturn their no-finals status.
“There’s a lot of hope and excitement,” Whiting said on SEN’s Sportsday.
“You don’t get a bigger name in terms of a coach than Damien Hardwick.
“There is a lot of expectation that this is it for Gold Coast after 13 years of not making finals. There’s a genuine expectation that they’ll break that duck this year.”
There has been a breath of fresh air that has swept through the Suns since Hardwick’s arrival.
The main difference under ‘Dimma’, as opposed to the likes of Stuart Dew, Rodney Eade and Guy McKenna, is how “dynamic” the training sessions are.
“The most noticeable thing for me is Hardwick’s drills are way more dynamic,” he added.
“They’re short and sharp, they’re quick, there’s a lot of adherence to structure and that’s why he’s trying to implement. He’s got one pre-season to try and educate the players on a completely different game style to what they’re used to.
“It’s how dynamic the drills are and how intense it is. That’s been the main thing I’ve noticed.”
Whiting has also observed Hardwick’s desire to immerse himself in the on-field action, while reserving some trash talk for those who get in his way on the training track.
“He’s very vocal,” he continued.
“He’s probably done this at Richmond for 14 years, I just haven’t had the exposure to it. He gets very involved in the drills, he’s been on the tackle bags, he’s been on the marking bags.
“He likes to get right amongst it, he’s keen to give the players a bit of lip when he sees an opportunity, he gives his assistant coaches a bit of lip. He’s very hands on but also has a lot of trust in his assistants, he lets them run a good chunk of the sessions.
“He’s very involved, whereas ‘Stuey’ (Dew) probably stood back a little bit more.”
The Suns will continue preparing for their first competitive match sim against Brisbane at Springfield on February 22 before their AFL community Series fixture against GWS in Canberra on February 29.
The club’s 2024 season proper kicks off with an intriguing clash against Hardwick’s old club Richmond at Heritage Bank Stadium in Opening Round on March 9.