Three weeks out from Gold Coast's Opening Round clash, star swingman Mac Andrew is still uncertain about where coach Damien Hardwick will place him in the lineup.
The Suns underwent three quarters of match simulation on Thursday, with Andrew thrust into the forward line to mix up Gold Coast's attacking dynamic.
Andrew's versatility has been on display before, because while typically stationed as an intercepting defender, his raw athleticism can be utilised in the forward line - particularly playing dividends in 2024's clash against Essendon, where Andrew clunked a huge pack mark and kicked the match-winner after the siren.
With Jed Walter entering just his second year, the young key forward prospect may still take time to develop, leaving Coleman Medal-fancy Ben King without a tall partner to shoulder the load.
Hardwick is evidently keen to trial an Andrew switch forward when necessary, playing the 21-year-old in the forward arc during Thursday's match simulation. The move leaves Andrew's position for Opening Round up in the air though, with even the 201cm athlete himself not sure of where Hardwick prefers him to play, and where he'll suit up against Essendon next month.
"I'm not too sure actually now, now that I played forward today," Andrew said lightheartedly.
"It's good fun, like I love playing down back, I love playing down forward. I feel comfortable wherever I play.
"I just want to do whatever 'Dimma' says to do and whatever I can do to help the team
out."
With Hardwick entering his second season as coach, Andrew believes the club has had its grace period to learn the triple premiership coach's gameplan.
More responsibility to take initiative to fix errors has become a key part of Gold Coast's pre-season, with Andrew stating the players are becoming more reliant on themselves recognising their mistakes, a stark difference to how Hardwick's first pre-season went at the club.
"It's a lot different this year, we've got a lot more freedom to kind of go out there and play (by) ourselves," Andrew said.
"12 months ago, we were learning the game plan, now we all understand it, so it's just about fine-tuning it.
"So he's (Hardwick) given us more ownership to kind of correct that ourselves out in the field, rather than stop-start training and stuff like that all the time.
"We just have a lot more ownership to do what we want to do on the field. It's a lot more smooth as well, whereas last year it was just kind of do whatever 'Dimma' says and play that way, whereas now we kind of know what we've got to do, and if something goes wrong we know how to fix it.
"We're not really relying on him, we're relying on the 18 players that are playing out there at the time."
Gold Coast will be able to continue experimenting with their lineup and gameplan in their upcoming practice matches, including a three-team match simulation with Brisbane and Collingwood. The Suns will then play Sydney at home in the Community Series before beginning their 2025 campaign against Essendon for Opening Round, the victims of Andrew's Round 22 match-winner.
