Gold Coast coach Stuart Dew has earned a two-year contract extension, quashing months of speculation about his AFL future.
Key points:
- Dew has the Suns placed 11th on the ladder and in finals contention
- He has re-signed until the end of the 2024 season
- Dew is the Suns’ longest-serving coach, having been in the role since 2018
He will remain at the Suns at least until the end of 2024 and the new deal is a massive win for Dew and the club.
Dew started the season under intense pressure about his future, with four-time premiership coach Alastair Clarkson’s name mentioned widely in the media as a potential candidate if the Suns were to make a coaching change.
But Dew has the Suns in the hunt for their first finals series, sitting two wins outside the top eight in 11th place on the ladder.
He is their longest-serving senior coach and will be in charge of his 100th match in round 18.
With his future secured, Dew is setting his sights high.
“It’s our goal to chase down ‘firsts’ for this football club. A first AFL finals campaign, winning our first AFL final and of course chasing our first premiership,” Dew said in a club statement.
“The job is not done, and the best is yet to come.”
Dew paid tribute to the support he had received from the Suns and their fans through some testing times.
“I’m immensely proud to coach Gold Coast and I think with the help of some fantastic people around me we’ve laid some exciting foundations to build on in the coming years,” Dew said.
“We have had an unprecedented level of commitment, support and dedication from everyone involved to create a connection to a journey that people believed in. I love this club and the game, and it gives me all the love back.
“We want to be a club that our members and supporters can be proud of. The support we have received from our community has been nothing short of incredible and will always be valued by myself and the playing group.”
Suns chairman Tony Cochrane has backed Dew fiercely, particularly when speculation about the coach’s future reached a fever pitch earlier this season.
“We’ve had real clarity from the start of this season on what our expectations were as a football club and our belief in our senior coach Stuart Dew,” Cochrane said.
“Stuey has worked tirelessly alongside a number of others to create an environment that sets our players, and this football club, up for success both on and off the field and we look forward to him taking us forward on that journey, as we continue to build a strong culture and a winning environment.”
Dew’s reappointment follows the re-signing this year of key players such as Ben King, Touk Miller and Jack Lukosius.
AAP/ABC
Source: AFL NEWS ABC
