Gold Coast coach Stuart Dew has left the scene with more questions than answers after a 78-point Collingwood thumping massively dented the Suns' AFL finals hopes.
An afternoon filled with promise at a packed Heritage Bank Stadium quickly became a black-and-white nightmare for the hosts in an 18.12 (120) to 5.12 (42) Magpies win.
There was a sea of black and white in the 22,483-strong Gold Coast crowd - the club's third-biggest home attendance - and they weren't disappointed as the ladder leaders hit top gear on Saturday.
Unrelenting defensive pressure quickly told and Collingwood's lightning-fast ball movement, particularly through the corridor, continued to catch the Suns napping.
Four straight Gold Coast goals in the third term saved some blushes when the Pies' lead had bloated to 84 points, but the hosts were goalless in the final quarter.
Jamie Elliott (five goals) filled his boots while Nick Daicos (36 disposals, 10 tackles, eight clearances, one goal) did as he pleased and John Noble (30 touches, one goal) showed why the Magpies are reportedly keen to extend his contract.
The Suns (7-8) could have entered the top eight with a win and had set themselves to make a statement after thumping Hawthorn at home last week, Dew saying last week he's "get some information" about his men.
But they were instantly off the pace; dropping chest marks, kicking out on the full and accused of ball-watching as Collingwood cut them to bits.
"We got some information," Dew said.
"We looked frazzled ... to start like that; be so reactive and just subscribe to a ladder position and style of game from an opposition is very disappointing.
"It leaves us with questions as to why, when pressure comes some weeks we can handle it and why, like tonight, we didn't."
Gold Coast will likely need five wins from the remaining eight rounds to make the top eight for the first time and it gets no easier against second-placed Port Adelaide on the road next week.
The signs were there early when Elliot artfully knocked the ball back from the goal, ran around the post and then got his boot to it before it crossed the line.
He kicked another from a full-field sequence that caught the Suns off guard and he had four before Hewago Oea kicked the host's first late in the half.
Any designs Gold Coast had on stemming the flow were snickered at by the rampant Magpies, who moved to 13-2.
First Sam Collins and Brandon Ellis took each other out and Daicos obliged with a goal, while Bobby Hill finished another scything full-field movement.
Patrick Lipinski then ran off the back of a stoppage to snap a goal and make it a 62-point game at the main break.
Delisted Sun Oleg Markov then drilled a goal - his first for Collingwood - from outside 50m against his former team before they finally took their foot off the throttle.
"Anyone watching from home could see our attack of the ball was really strong and that sets the foundations," Collingwood coach Craig McRae said.
"They're a good contest team, we had to bring our A game and we certainly did that."
