The accolades just keep rolling in for Jake Rogers.

As the dust settles on his sizzling performance against West Coast last Sunday, which earned him a nomination for the NAB AFL Rising Star Award, the statisticians have uncovered two facts that underline the quality of his introduction to the AFL.

Rogers had an equal club record four goal assists and 13 contested possessions to go with 22 possessions and a goal against the Eagles.

His four goal assists in his second game is something that only six of 148 other SUNS players  have done in 14 years and 289 games - Brandon Matera (2012), Tom Lynch (2014, 2016), Nick Malceski (2016), Gary Ablett (2017), Alex Sexton (2017) and Ben Ainsworth (2022).

So, after one goal assist on debut, Rogers now has had as many or more goal assists in two games than 74 SUNS players had or have had in their entire career.

His average of 2.5 goal assists betters that of Jacob Townsend, who averaged 1.0 in two games in 2021. The next best average is Gary Ablett’s 0.83.

And, belying his size (or lack thereof), the 172cm dynamo had more contested possessions than all but three other players in club history in their first two games. And those three were significantly bigger and stronger than the little #29.

Jaeger O’Meara had 16 contested possessions in his second game in 2013, while Matt Rowell started 11-14 in his first two games in 2020, and Alex Davies had 14 and 10 in his first two games split over 2021 and 2022.

Rogers is also one of just 12 SUNS to have 20 or more possessions inside his first two games.

21 – Jy Farrar – 2^nd game – 2021
32 – Brayden Fiorini – 2^nd game – 2016
26 – Matt Rowell – 2^nd game – 2020
25 – Jaeger O’Meara – 2^nd game – 2013
25 – Kyal Horsley – 2^nd game – 2012
24 – Kade Kolodjashnij – 2^nd game – 2014
22 – Sam Clohesy – 1^st game – 2024
22 – Jake Rogers – 2^nd game – 2024
21 – Josh Glenn – 1^st game – 2015
21 – Adam Saad – 2^nd game – 2015
20 – Hayden Jolly – 20 – 2^nd game – 2011
20 – Bodhi Uwland – 20 – 1^st game - 2023

And Rogers is now the equal second-quickest SUNS player to earn a Rising Star nomination.

Izak Rankine did so on debut in 2020, while Matt Rowell was nominated in his second game and Connor Budarick and Elijah Hollands in their third.

A total of 24 SUNS players have now been nominated for Rising Star award.

Brandon Matera was the first when he had 21 possessions and kicked four goals in the club’s first win over Port Adelaide in 2011, and Zac Smith followed a fortnight later with 22 possessions in the ruck in the club’s second win and their first over Brisbane.

Five players have polled in the Brownlow Medal in their nomination game – Matera, Smith, Adam Saad, Rowell and Rankine. And after Rogers polled two votes in the coaches award this week it’s not out of the question that he will be the sixth.

SUNS Rising Star Nominations have been: