Essendon great Matthew Lloyd has stated the Gold Coast Suns' list is set to be one of the 'worst' lists to ever be put on an AFL field.
The Suns have been struggling for a number of years now, only winning four games in 2018 which sees the club perform a mass exodus of players during this off-season.
Co-captain Tom Lynch has jumped ship signing with Richmond, and it seems possible other co-captain Steven May could too be on his way out of the club.
Given the amount of player departures in the off-season and hardly any new signings, Lloyd says he expects the club to field one of the worst teams in the competition.
Speaking on AFL Trade Radio, Lloyd said fellow Queensland club the Brisbane Lions seem to be leaps and bounds ahead of the Suns in creating a list for 2019.
โLeigh Matthews, I sit with him every weekend onย 3AW Footballย and he talks about the breeding ground that is the Gold Coast Suns and the Brisbane Lions,โ Lloyd said.
โBrisbane at least are finding their feet with David Noble, Chris Fagan, Luke Hodge โ theyโve brought some great people in and theyโve suddenly held their players.
โBut Gold Coast Suns, itโs the opposite of that. Iโve never seen anything like this. Gerard Healy says this year they were the worst team since Fitzroy, I think next year they get even worse. No Tom Lynch, most likely no Steven May.
โThis will be the worst list weโve ever seen put on an AFL field and they (Port Adelaide) are just openly saying we will take players within two years.โ
It also seems opposition clubs are targeting the Suns too, with Port Adelaide sending a warning stating they'll be after their pick two and three prospects Jack Lukosius and Izak Rankine once their contracts expire in two years time.
Port Adelaide list manager Jason Cripps told the media on Monday they'll make a play for the pair in the future if they decide on signing with the Suns.
โIf a Lukosius and a Rankine end up going to Gold Coast like SOS said, weโre probably pretty happy to try and get them back in a few yearsโ time,โ Jason Cripps said.
โBecause then it just becomes a two-horse race between us and the Crows, as opposed to a Victorian kid that wants to come back home โ heโs potentially got 10 options.
"So thatโs part of the discussion and strategy".
Lloyd said it comes down to the Suns environment they've created and if they club was to change that, more players would want to 'stay and grow together' in order to stop the horrible results.
