Update from our Football President

To all our Suns Members,

It is with a huge amount of gratitude and pride that I formally step down as Football President of the Surf Coast Suns.

I am incredibly grateful to have had the opportunity to lead this thriving club over the past four years. I’d like to share a little of the journey with you all, because this period has changed the course of our club forever. What we have achieved is something that hasn’t been done in this region for a generation, and I feel incredibly proud to have played a part in it.

My Suns journey actually began nine years ago, when I entered my young kids into Auskick. I started by helping Joel Bett with the Auskick program, rolling ground balls to the kids and simply lending a hand wherever I could. From there, I put my hand up to coach and had the pleasure of coaching the same group of kids from U9s through to U14s.

In 2022, I started the season coaching the U/12s when the President’s role became vacant. At the time, I was frustrated seeing so many talented kids leave our club to pursue opportunities at clubs that offered a pathway to senior football and higher divisions. That frustration quickly turned into a passion to see our club provide that same pathway for our own kids.

I took on the role with one clear objective: to develop the Surf Coast Suns Football Netball Club into a true junior and senior club.

In my head, that vision was always going to be completed by locking in an Easter fixture with our cross-town rivals, the Torquay Tigers. I had played it out in my head back in 2022, and I wasn’t going to stop until it happened.

I’m not going to lie — the job was enormous.

At the time, the club was fielding around eight junior football teams, we were coming through the challenges of COVID, and we didn’t have a clubroom or a home for our members to congregate. I had to convince AFL Barwon, AFL Victoria, the Surf Coast Shire and many other stakeholders that this vision could become a reality.

To make it happen, I needed to identify the right people and put the right roles around me to help develop and transform our club into the powerhouse it is becoming.

We needed our own identity, separate from simply being seen as a Gold Coast Suns spin-off. That meant a new logo, an apparel line that could generate income, and a strong group of sponsors who believed in what we were trying to build. I went out and gathered as many amazing sponsors as possible, many of whom are still with us today, and I will always be grateful for their belief and support.

We also needed somewhere for our members to come together and socialise until we had a permanent home of our own.

I will always hold The Sands Golf Club dear to me for backing me in during those early years and allowing us to have a home away from home. That support was incredibly important to us.

From there came countless discussions and debates with the Surf Coast Shire to allow us to claim the clubroom upstairs that we now proudly call our own. Having a home base — somewhere for Suns people to come together, connect and belong — has been a huge part of our growth.

Another incredibly important part of this journey has been our partnership with Nino and the team at Cafe El Nido who we now know as the Surf Coast Sports Food Hub.

Nino, I can’t thank you enough for working with me, believing in me and believing in our club. Your support has been a huge part of what we have created. The relationship we have built has helped shape the clubroom, our cultural Thursday night dinners and the thriving space that has evolved into something really special.

I know how special it is because I’ve had countless other club presidents tell me how envious they are of what we have created.

I feel incredibly privileged to say that I helped build this club’s first-ever senior football program — from management and coaching structures through to helping form a playing list of more than 60 players.

And, somehow, I even got to pull on the boots and play in both the reserves and senior teams in our inaugural year while still serving as President. That is something I’ll always cherish.

I’ve also had the privilege of working alongside so many amazing committee and sub-committee members over the years. You all know who you are, and I want to sincerely thank you for your support, your hard work and, most importantly, the memories.

To every volunteer who has given their time to the Suns — thank you. You are valued more than you probably realise. Our club simply could not operate without you, and we will always need more people to put their hand up and get involved.

There is one person I particularly want to mention — Brodie Marston.

Brodie, ever since I took over in 2022, you have been my strategic partner. From lobbying council and politicians for better facilities, to targeting players and helping form our playing list, we have spent countless hours talking through decisions, challenges and strategies for our senior program.

Those long conversations on weeknights and during the days have helped shape what we now have.

We have built an amazing foundation and culture for the club to continue building upon. Thank you for everything, mate. I can genuinely say that you have become one of my closest friends, and I’m incredibly grateful for that.

After four years, I honestly feel like I have nothing left to give to the club in this role.

But I will always be a Suns person.

I’ll still be there on Thursday nights enjoying a meal with my kids. I’ll still be there on weekends watching them play footy and netball. I’ll always be around to have a chat, lend support and help wherever I can.

And, to be honest, I can’t wait to experience the Suns from the other side — walking up to our ground on a Saturday, watching our senior team and enjoying a full day of sport with my family.

Thank you to every Suns member for trusting me with our great club.

The Suns is my home. It is my community. I couldn’t be prouder of what we have achieved together, and I’m incredibly excited to watch the next chapter unfold.

I’ll always be a Sun.

Cheers,

Jay