Why Cornes thinks the Suns could soon be unbeatable

Kane Cornes has warned the AFL to be careful what it wishes for from the Gold Coast.

Cornes’ comments come after Gold Coast willingly traded picks 6 and 13 to Richmond and Port Adelaide as they again face a comparison of bids for Academy players in the upcoming draft.

The Suns selected four players in last year’s draft in the first round, with Jed Walter, Ethan Reed, Jake Rogers and Will Graham all coming from their Academy.

With more Academy players on the way, including Leo Lombard this year and Zeke Uhland and Beau Addinsall next year, Cornes believes the Suns could soon become unbeatable as they continually add first-round talent without the need for a first-round pick .

With players such as Daniel Rioli and John Noble now opting to join the club from big Victorian teams, Cornes believes the Suns are on the verge of becoming a strong team.

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“Be careful what you wish for, AFL,” Cornes said. AFL Trade Radio.

“There will come a point when the Gold Coast will be invincible.

“You can’t have so many good young players and weapons for so many years in a row (and not be good).

“Now there are players who want to go and play there with a good coach (Damien Hardwick), they will just dominate.

“Look at everyone three or four years from now complaining about it and we’ll say, ‘Well, we tried to warn you, the warning signs were there when Gold Coast gave pick six to Dan Rioli.’

“Early selections don’t mean anything to them like they do to other clubs.”

Cornes believes the likes of Port Adelaide, St Kilda and Essendon have no hope of competing with the Suns in the coming years and he believes the Suns must reach the finals and start its streak of dominance since the 2025 season.

“Rioli gets pick six and 23, but Dan Houston actually gets pick 13 and 29 — go figure,” Cornes said.

“There is no hope for Port Adelaide. There is no hope for St Kilda. There is no hope for Essendon. Nobody has any hope of competing with Gold Coast in two or three years when all these players have played 50-60 games together and are the best of the best, playing for the same team under a good coach. .

“Look, they’re going to come, and for them it’s going to happen this year.

“They can’t have another year where they don’t play finals. It would be the most embarrassing situation for any team if they failed to reach the finals next year with this group.

“But in two, three or four years, be careful what you wish for.”

As things stand, Gold Coast will enter the 2024 AFL Draft with picks 39, 41, 51, 61, 70, 76 and 78, which will help them match Academy bids.

The Suns will have three first-round picks in 2025 that they can again trade for established talent, as well as acquire later picks to match future offers.