WHILE signing Nick Malceski was an undoubted off-season coup for Gold Coast, the addition of another recruit might prove to be the club's most shrewd move yet.
Mitch Hallahan spent four seasons battling away to win six senior games at a star-studded Hawthorn outfit before the Suns threw him an offer he couldn't refuse.
Already blessed with a fleet of speedy midfielders – think Harley Bennell, Dion Prestia, Jaeger O'Meara, Jarrod Harbrow and Jack Martin – the Suns needed some more grunt.
They identified Hallahan halfway through the 2014 season, and went out and got their man.
Fresh 'Rocket' ready for juggling act
Despite a shortened pre-season following ankle surgery, he hit the ground running in Sunday's NAB Challenge opener against Geelong in Townsville, finishing with 24 disposals and eight clearances.
One man happy to see the former Hawk alongside him in the clinches is Gold Coast's reigning best and fairest winner, David Swallow.
In his first four years, Swallow has been left to do a bulk of the bash-and-crash work alongside skipper Gary Ablett, Michael Rischitelli and to a lesser extent Prestia and O'Meara.
"He's going to bring another dimension to our midfield and allow a couple of the outside players to not play inside as much," Swallow said.
"He's a good inside player, very clean and he has good skills.
"He uses the ball well and he'll be a good addition for us this year."
Hallahan is not blessed with blistering pace, but is smart and adept at getting his hands on the ball around stoppages.
With Ablett, O'Meara and Prestia all on track to return from injury for the final pre-season match against the Brisbane Lions on March 20, Swallow believes building midfield combinations will not be a problem.
"I think he's already fitted in well," he said.
"When we get a few of the other midfielders back it won't take long for them to learn how he plays. It won't take long at all."
Jack Martin and Sean Lemmens (both rested against the Cats), along with Tom Nicholls, Luke Russell and rookie Josh Glenn, are expected to make their 2015 debut against Greater Western Sydney on Saturday.
