Sam's our man, says Suns coach
Suns coach Damien Hardwick has suggested rival clubs shouldn't waste their time trying to lure midfielder Sam Flanders away from the Gold Coast.
Flanders, 23, is contracted to the Suns until the end of the 2027 AFL season; however, reports have emerged that St Kilda and some other Victorian clubs are keen to bring Flanders back to his home state sooner.
However, Hardwick has no intention of letting go of the Gippsland product.
'We're not in the business of trading our very best players, so Sam Flanders won't be going anywhere,' the Suns coach said on Friday.
'I've got a real soft spot for Sam. He's one of my favourites. He's been really challenged this year with injury but … we're really positive about his back end of the year.
'He's the solution for us. He's an outstanding player. When he plays at his very best with Matt Rowell and Noah Anderson and Touk Miller … we're a different side.' Gold Coast midfielder Sam Flanders is among of Suns coach Damien Hardwick's 'favourites'. Gold Coast Suns Credit: News Corp Australia
Flanders isn't the only Suns star being reportedly chased by Victorian clubs, with off-contract on-baller Rowell and forward Ben King also linked with moves south.
However, Hardwick said the Suns – who have won eight from 12 this season ahead of their clash on Sunday against the GWS Giants at Engie Stadium – were set to become a club that top players from other teams would want to join in a similar way to fellow Queenslanders and reigning premiers Brisbane.
'We've got to make sure this is the very best environment for players,' the former Richmond three-time premiership-winning coach said,
'We've got opposition clubs speaking to our players and we're speaking to opposition players.
'We want to keep our very good players, (and) we're also happy to take a few as well.'
Hardwick's Suns are hoping to avoid a third successive defeat on Sunday after suffering back-to-back loss before their bye last weekend.
'We're really bullish about how far we can go,' he said ahead of the 'next shift' in the Suns' battle to play finals football for the first time.
'We've put to bed the first part of the year. This part of the year is really important. The contenders stand up and the pretenders fall away. That's the challenge from here on in.
'We're really excited about the next block of four games (against the Giants, Melbourne, Essendon and Collingwood) that's going to present an opportunity for us.
'We're firmly zone in on what that looks like. We've got some areas of our game that we really like, but we've certainly got a lot of improvement left in us as well.'
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