The flexibility of Gold Coast's key position players could be the club's most dangerous asset entering the 2026 season, with a stacked depth chart rarely seen across the AFL.
That's the view of Suns and Victoria AFL Origin assistant coach Shaun Grigg, who hinted at unveiling a plethora of unpredictable options for selection after positive signs from Gold Coast's pre-season build.
The opportunity to experiment with a variety of selection choices is particularly in thanks to the continued development of spearhead youngsters Jed Walter and Jamarra Ugle-Hagan.
Walter improved to kick over a goal a game in 2025, just his second season in the league, and has grown again since the conclusion of the Suns' historical campaign, eclipsing his listed 195cm height, according to Grigg.
Ugle-Hagan, meanwhile, "hasn't put a foot wrong" since moving to the Carrara-based outfit, giving the Suns the opportunity to play four talls in the front six, should he emerge as a consistent best 23 talent in the upcoming practice matches.
The move would be in a similar vein to Hawthorn's potent four key forward mix that starred in their push toward September last year.
"As we get into some more match practice now, it's something we can toy with those players and see what the best look is," Grigg said of the potential four-pronged line-up to SEN on Tuesday.
"If they're all fit and firing, it'll certainly be a tough call for us coaches and how players are playing.
"No doubt we've got flexible players. They're all coming on strong, Jed Walter has had another year in the system, Ben King we see improvement from every year.
"Jamarra has come in and hasn't put a foot wrong. He's building his fitness and getting to know our game style nicely."
Grigg's nod to Ugle-Hagan follows a sentiment shared by many members of the Suns' organisation, with defender Joel Jeffrey telling Zero Hanger earlier this month that the soon-to-be 24-year-old is "the fittest he's been in all of his career".
"To his credit, [Jamarra] has shown up and earned the respect of everyone so far," Grigg said.
"He's put his head down and worked really hard. At times, him and Christian [Petracca] have found out what it's like working out in the heat here all the time.
"But Jamarra's football ability that he's shown us... he's just got to keep building on his fitness and how we like to play. He'll put his best foot forward in the coming weeks and we'll see how close he'll get."
The peculiar selection choices may not end at the forward line, however. Grigg revealed that the Suns may look to utilise the extra man on the bench as a secondary ruck, continuing the theme of supreme height in the best 23.
23-year-old Ned Moyle is the likely option, with the 206cm athletic beast tearing apart the VFL for multiple seasons since being taken in the 2021 Mid-Season Draft. He averaged 18.5 disposals, 6.1 clearances (13th in VFL) and 41.5 hitouts per game (3rd in VFL) in 2025.
The Suns also have 202cm utility Ethan Read at their disposal, with the club's Academy product mostly positioned forward of the ball, while being able to pinch-hit in the ruck or play in defence.
"We've got a young ruckman Ned Moyle who will put pressure on Witts... [Playing two rucks] has been a good discussion for us throughout the summer and something we're going to look at in our practice matches coming up," Grigg said.
"We'll be pretty fluid on who is in form and fit, though... As we get more practice games in, it'll be up to the players to put their hands up.
"We've got a really deep squad, and it'll be a difficult operation for us coaches to pick the best 23."
Ultimately, Gold Coast's potential unique positional plays will be something to keep an eye on heading into the new season, first taking on St Kilda in a scratch match on February 19 before officially playing Brisbane in the Community Series on February 26.
