AFL

Slumping Suns to face rock-solid Magpies defence

By Roger Vaughan

Jul 3, 2026

Harry Perryman says everyone is doing their bit in the well-drilled Collingwood defence. -AAP Image

Collingwood's mean defence will ask blunt questions as Gold Coast try to rediscover their way in an AFL season that once held so much promise.

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A five-game losing streak has sent the Suns plummeting from top-four fancies to mid-table crisis.

At halftime of the May 23 game against North Melbourne, they led by six goals and were fourth on the ladder.

Gold Coast stopped in the last quarter of that game, losing by six points, to start the rot. They now sit 11th - half a game behind the Magpies.

Last week, the Suns could only kick three goals against top side Fremantle. Meanwhile, Collingwood torched Richmond on turnovers, scoring 91 points from that source and winning their second game in a row.

The Magpies will fancy their chances of a big scalp in Saturday's away match.

"We've pencilled that one in and we're really looking forward to getting up there. It's a massive game for both clubs," Magpies half-back Harry Perryman told AAP.

"It's what you play footy for."

While Collingwood captain and defensive general Darcy Moore is gone for the season with another hamstring injury, he hasn't been in the side since round 12.

They also have won their last two games without hard-nut Brayden Maynard, who will return from his King's Birthday shoulder dislocation to bolster their backline.

"We pride ourselves on just playing our (defensive) system. We have a lot of blokes who just play their role, week-in, week-out, and they do a lot of things that might go unnoticed ... doing the little things well," Perryman said.

Perryman said they had spent the last couple of months working on their turnover game and said it had been "impressive" against the Tigers.

It also meant Collingwood kicked more than 100 points for only the second time this season. While their backline is rock-solid, it is self-evident that the Magpies' attack remains a work in progress.

"Some of our forwards haven't played a lot of footy together, they're still working it out together," Perryman said.Â

"Hopefully at the back end of this year, we can get some good chemistry up there and start banking some (wins)."

Collingwood will also bring in defender Liam Puncher for his AFL debut. Suns academy product Dylan Patterson will also make his senior debut and Gold Coast recalled Ethan Read.