It's do-or-die for the loser of Fremantle vs Gold Coast this weekend, with the chance of finals effectively over, as one team goes 2-3 and the other slumps to 1-4.
Their only win of the season was an impressive battle over Geelong in Round 3, celebrating David Swallow's 200th game in style. However, they were unable to back their performance up last weekend, falling to St Kilda by 50 points.
Gold Coast has played a strong contested possession game this season, as well as being strong around clearances, with star players Matt Rowell and Touk Miller amongst the best in the AFL for these areas.
The main issue for the Suns currently is the breakdown inside 50, ranked 14th for generating inside 50s and 18th for marks inside 50.
Speaking on Yokayi Footy, triple premiership Lion Darryl White has urged Stuart Dew to "let the reins go" this weekend and let his team play more freely.
"It's just the outer circle when they get out on the periphery and their polish going inside 50 that is really, really struggling," White said.
"The transition of actually moving the ball into their forward half is a bit slow."
Gold Coast have a tough fixture ahead of them, with games against Melbourne, Richmond, and Brisbane at the Gabba over the next five weeks.
This weekend looms as a strong opportunity to experiment with their game plan against a pretty evenly-matched opponent.
"Last year, they played a bit of manic footy and got nine or 10 wins, and I thought they were pretty good," White said.
"The competition says it all at the moment; the competition says quick, manic, controlled chaos at times."
Gold Coast and Freo will battle on Friday at 5:10 pm (AEST) in the first game at Norwood Oval as part of Gather Round.
