Damien Hardwick and Gold Coast are set to unveil three new faces to the senior lineup this week during their Gather Round clash with GWS, with Suns Academy trio Will Graham, Sam Clohesy and Ethan Read poised to play their maiden AFL game.
The moment every kid dreams of ๐ฅน pic.twitter.com/JUIaVrFppN
— Gold Coast Suns (@GoldCoastSUNS) April 3, 2024
Read (Pick 9) and Graham (Pick 26) were taken in last year's draft in the haul of four, with Jed Walter (Pick 3) having already debuted while Jake Rogers (Pick 14) was not far away following an interrupted pre-season.
Read, who's impressed in the VFL so far this year, said: โWe were told we had an appearance at the club this morning, walked into the boardroom and there's Dimma with our guernseys, telling us we're debuting this weekend.
โIt's a dream come true. To have grown up with Will too andย now get the chance to play my first AFL game with him, it's pretty surreal.ย
โIt's a mix of nerves and excitement at the moment. We've got a few days to go still so hopefully the nerves calm down a bit.โย
Graham, who featured in the reserves side four times in 2023, was "shaking" when he discovered the news.
โIt's something I've been looking forward to my whole life so i'm just excited to get out there. To have my Mum and little brotherย there as I found out too, it's a moment I'll hold forever," Graham said.
โIt'll feel a bit like home (debuting alongside Read). We've been playing together for however many years, but to do it on this stage and for this team, it'll be special.โ
Twenty-one-year-old Clohesy is also a former member of the Suns Academy having since relocated to Melbourne as a teenager.
The half-back was taken with Pick 4 in last year's Rookie Draft after winning the Fothergill-Round-Mitchell Medal as the most promising young talent in the VFL in 2023 and playing against the SUNS in the 2023 VFL Grand Final for Werribee.ย
โI'm still in a bit of shock at the moment, but it's everything I've wanted so I'm ready to go,โ Clohesy said.ย
โI don't normally get too nervous but this is a bit bigger of an occasion.ย It's been a long journey with a lot of moving around, but I've gotten myself here and I can't wait to run out on Sunday.โย
On Sunday, the trio will run out to face the Giants at Mt Barker Oval in the Adelaide Hills.
