It seems like forever since the Gold Coast Suns and the GWS Giants entered the AFL competition.
And 14 years is a long time, which makes for extraordinary efforts by the last remaining nine inaugural Suns and Giants to still be in the top-flight.
Remarkably, only two have persisted with the same club for the entire journey. Toby Greene and Stephen Coniglio.
Gold Coast joined the competition 12 months earlier, and unveiled the AFL's attack on the eastern seaboard, which was quickly joined by GWS.
Headed by Geelong legend and Brownlow medallist Gary Ablett Jr and inaugural coach Guy McKenna, the Suns unearthed a new era for the league, and with that, a host of fresh pimple-filled faces.
Dion Prestia, Tom Lynch and Steven May were among the first names on the Gold Coast roster. Prestia and Lynch were drafted with Picks 9 and 11 in 2010, while May was a priority zone selection, having played in the Northern Territory.
Prestia was the first to leave, escaping the struggling club as Richmond entered the dynasty - ahead of 2017. The midfielder is a three-time premiership player.
Lynch and May captained the club for two seasons before they departed for Richmond and Melbourne at the end of 2018, arguably enduring the Suns' worst period since their inception. Lynch secured two premierships in his first pair of seasons at the Tigers, as May lifted the cup aloft in 2021. A feat Gold Coast has yet to achieve.
All three are still vital contributors to their respective sides and will play a pivotal role in helping rebuild both clubs.
As mentioned, Greene and Coniglio are the only remaining inaugural Giants still at the club, and has watched Adam Treloar, Taylor Adams and Jeremy Cameron depart to various clubs.
The 32-year-old has led GWS since 2022 and has accomplished just about everything from an individual perspective, but is still driven by the ultimate team success, which the club has been agonisingly close to. Coniglio was the captain for three seasons prior.
Greene and Coniglio watched former teammate Cameron win a premiership for Geelong in 2022, and he almost replicated the feeling last year, but ran into a rampant Brisbane outfit.
Both Treloar and Adams reunited at Collingwood initially and featured in the club's 2018 grand final team that was a kick away from securing a flag.
But have since split, with Treloar being traded as part of the Pies fire sale at the end of 2020 to the Western Bulldogs, where he played in the decider against Melbourne and May in his first season in the tri-colours.
Adams was the heartbreak story of Collingwood's 2023 triumph, and his trauma of missing out on grand final success, coupled with limited midfield opportunities, saw him seek a move back to New South Wales, and join Sydney.
Nick Haynes is also still chasing the pigskin and found a new home at Carlton after 13 seasons at GWS.
The group of inaugural Suns and Giants was double its size on the eve of 2025, but after the completion of last season, six more left the AFL.
None bigger than Mr Gold Coast Sun David Swallow, who was Pick 1 in the 2010 intake and was the heartbeat of the expansion club.
As others left, Swallow stayed put, and in his last two games, experienced finals for the first time, including kicking the winning score in the breathtaking elimination final against Fremantle.
While Swallow was the pulse of the Suns, the same can be said for Callan Ward at the Giants, who began his career at the Western Bulldogs.
Ward captained GWS for eight seasons, and his career was cruelly ended by an ACL tear early in 2025.
Other inaugural Suns and Giants who left the AFL from other clubs were Will Hoskin-Elliott (GWS and Collingwood), Dylan Shiel (GWS and Essendon), Sam Frost (GWS, Melbourne and Hawthorn) and Sam Day (Gold Coast and Brisbane).
