GOLD Coast has turned to old school drills in a bid to rediscover some energy ahead of Saturday's clash against North Melbourne.
The Suns' main training session on Wednesday featured lots of one-on-one contest work.
There were three separate drills where balls were rolled out between two players who then battled until it was won and either an effective disposal or tackle was completed.
While one pair went at it, the rest of the list stood around and watched until it was their turn.
Following lacklustre losses against Fremantle and Port Adelaide in the past fortnight, coach Stuart Dew said the focus was on energy.
"There was a fair bit of contest work, that's been off the level we think it should be," Dew said following the session.
"Normally we'd do it all at once, whereas today we got the boys to watch each other and give each other the energy.
"The content was the same (as usual), but it took a little longer because we did it one at a time."
Gold Coast matched Port Adelaide at the coalface on Saturday, but once the ball was one disposal clear, they were nowhere to be found.
If they had it, the ball was often shuffled back to a teammate under even more pressure, and if they didn't, Port players were free to roam.
With co-captain David Swallow (concussion), midfielder Lachie Weller (hamstring) and vice-captain Sam Collins (ankle) all unavailable, the Suns head into Saturday's match against cellar dwellers North Melbourne missing some key personnel.
The VFL team has won its past two matches, but Dew was reluctant to commit to any changes.
He said the talented crop of Ben Ainsworth, Will Brodie, Darcy Macpherson and last week's medical sub Brayden Fiorini were all "in the mix".
"Benny has gone back, his last two games have been really consistent," Dew said.
"How they force their way in is obviously consistent performances.
"Our VFL team were down 30 points plus again on the weekend and fought their way back, which was fantastic.
"It's all up in the air, selections, because at both levels we've been inconsistent."
