It's been a heavy few days for Steven King but the interim Gold Coast coach says he's as prepared as anyone to take over from the axed Stuart Dew as he left the door open for a tilt at the full-time position.
The All-Australian ruckman and 2007 premiership player with Geelong will lead the Suns against his other former club St Kilda on the Gold Coast on Saturday.
The Saints will debut 19-year-old small forward Jack Peris, son of Olympic hockey gold medallist and Commonwealth Games athletics champion Nova, at Heritage Bank Stadium.
King spoke to media on Thursday after the players' first session since Dew's sacking was confirmed on Tuesday.
"It's been a pretty heavy couple of days," he said.
"You feel for people that work in this industry. He's been unbelievable, I really enjoyed working with Stuey.
"But, as brutal as it is ... no-one waits for you and you have to get on with what your next responsibility is.
"It's not kind to everyone all the time and you don't always get what you deserve."
The former Cats captain was also an assistant at Western Bulldogs when they won a flag and reached a final during a 10-year stint that ended when he headed to Carrara in 2021.
Triple-premiership coach Damien Hardwick, who left his post at Richmond earlier this year but is keen to return to the arena, is the clear standout to replace Dew.
But King, who was in charge of the Suns' midfield, refused to rule out applying for the job himself.
"I feel as prepared as anyone in this role ... but that's something that's out of my control at the moment," he said.
King indicated 2020 No.7 draft pick Elijah Holland would return to the AFL side after "discovering himself" in the VFL and said he had a "couple of ideas" to bring to the table.
"But in times like these ... you can come in and try 100 new things and you don't get the result you're after," he said.
The Suns are one win and percentage outside the top eight and would likely need to win six of their last seven games to earn a maiden finals campaign.
"Not when it comes to finals, I think this is a must-win just in regards to how we respond," King said.
"It's just around the human element; how the players feel and making sure they're up for the challenge."
