However, there were some positives in the 63-point defeat following the successful returns of Jamie Charman, Josh Drummond and Jared Polec from injury.
“We probably had our best side for the year playing - at least on paper anyway,” Reserves Coach Nathan Clarke said.
“But while Charman, Drummond, Polec and Bartlett all played, they are probably still fairly underdone.”
“We hung in there for most of the first half and didn’t take our opportunities. Gold Coast were just too good for us in the third quarter.”
Clarke said that while the likes of Charman and Drummond only played limited minutes, there were some promising signs for the remainder of the season.
“You never expect a guy to dominate after 18 months out of the game, but he certainly had an impact. His energy and love for the game was evident,” Clarke said.
“He obviously still has that passion for the contest and really showed great leadership and energy. It was no coincidence that when we took him off in the third quarter, we battled a bit.”
“He took a nice grab and kicked a goal with his first kick back.”
“He pulled up a bit proppy, as you would expect, but we’re hopeful that he will get up again in time for our next game. We understand he’s still a bit fragile and won’t take anything for granted at this stage.”
“Callum Bartlett was pretty good up until he got a knock to the ribs in the second quarter,” Clarke said.
“The knock probably took 5-10% off Callum and he faded away a bit and didn’t have the same impact he did earlier. But he got another 100 valuable minutes under his belt.”
“I think the Bye has probably come at the right time for Callum. He’s had three good weeks, but now it’s time for a break.”
“Josh Drummond was workmanlike in his first game back. He probably struggled to get into the game offensively, but did his bit in defence.”
“Jared Polec didn’t have a huge impact, but he got through the game. He’s still feeling his way back from that knee injury. While there’s no structural damage, meniscus tears can take some time to settle and can cause some discomfort.”
Clarke said rookie Josh Dyson has been one of the standouts for the Reserves over the past month and is doing his chances of playing a senior game in 2011 no harm.
“Josh’s played 5-6 really good games in a row. I think there’s a strong chance he will be considered for a senior game before the season ends.”
“His first half of the season was largely interrupted because of a hamstring injury.”
“He’s playing predominantly in the midfield now and seems to be settled into one position. Before then, we had tried him up forward and down back at different stages which probably didn’t help.”
Like the senior team, the Lions Reserves will have this weekend off before facing Morningside the following week at Chelmer.
“Some of the boys will get away for a few days, while others will probably keep training through.”
“Guys like Drummo and Jared Polec would probably appreciate another week of footy to get some continuity back, but the majority are certainly ready for a break.”
