Overview

• Gold Coast must beat Essendon at People First Stadium on Wednesday to qualify for the club’s first AFL finals.
• The finishing spot will be decided by percentage, with a bigger win likely sending the Suns to Fremantle in Perth and a smaller one setting up GWS in Sydney.
• Essendon enters on a 12-game losing streak with significant injuries, though Suns players cautioned against assuming an easy game.
• Coach Damien Hardwick has flagged the returns of Daniel Rioli and Bailey Humphrey from injury to strengthen the lineup.
• AFL analyst Kane Cornes suggested Gold Coast could manage the victory margin to influence travel and matchup, presenting an external talking point before the game.