The 21-year-old battled hip and groin problems over the summer, which sidelined him for much of the Cats' pre-season.
But after playing four games in the VFL, he returned to elite footy in style against the Suns, in what was his first AFL appearance since last year's elimination final loss to Fremantle.
"Obviously it was good to be back out there with the boys again and have a run around," Vardy said as he warmed down after the match.
"In the first quarter I blew up. The speed of the game is a lot quicker than the VFL.
"But I think knowing that I'd had that period of time to play in the VFL to feel comfortable and confident with my body again was really good."
Vardy started on the bench but had an immediate impact when he came on.
The 200cm giant had the Geelong fans leaping out of their seats when he gathered the ball at his feet, then wheeled onto his right foot and slotted the Cats' first goal of the game.
"I just wanted to get into the game and get my hands on the ball," he said. "To kick a goal early in the game was great.
"I was probably pretty lucky to get on the end of a few in the last quarter. The ball was coming in that well from the mids.
"Obviously we blew them out of the water in the end and I got a couple of late ones, which was good."
Vardy spent most of the game against Gold Coast in the forward line, and that's where he hopes to spend most of his time this season.
"I grew up as a ruckman, but since I've been here I've played a lot as a forward," he explained.
"If I can stay forward and try and take a few catches it would be good."
Geelong is not expecting Vardy to play in each of its remaining 12 home and away matches, although he is likely to line up against Greater Western Sydney next Saturday as the Cats have the bye the following weekend.
"We're not interested in trying to steal 15 games this year and have him help us in the short-term," Geelong coach Chris Scott said.
"We want to extend his career for as long as possible.
"We've always thought he's an outstanding young player, but we need to be respectful of the (hip) injury.
"It's a very serious one and it's something that we'll continue to manage.
"So we think at this stage that he'll play next week, but there's no guarantee that he'll just play out the rest of the season without being managed along the way."
Adam McNicol covers Geelong news for AFL.com.au. Follow him on Twitter at @AFL_AdamMcNicol
