Can gold miners make a comeback in 2012?

It's something that has wrong-footed and infuriated me in recent years. And it's a theme that I, and many others like me, keep coming back to. I’m talking about the relative underperformance of gold miners versus the metal. That is, gold has risen, but the miners haven't. Why is this happening? And can we expect more of the same? Or will the tide finally turn in 2012?