Matt Rowell has won his first Gold Coast SUNS Club Champion in a thrilling count at The Star Gold Coast on Wednesday night.
In one of the closest finishes in the award’s history, Rowell finished the night on 72 votes, a single vote ahead of captain Noah Anderson with two-time Club Champion Touk Miller finishing third just another vote back.
The honour caps off a phenomenal 2025 campaign for Rowell who last week became just the club’s second Brownlow Medal winner.
He enhanced his reputation as one of the AFL’s finest contested players, averaging career-best figures in disposals (26.3 per game), tackles (8.6 per game, AFL #2) and clearances (8.2 per game, AFL #1).
His best individual performance came in the Round 18 win over Collingwood in which he recorded 32 disposals, 13 tackles, 12 clearances and two goals.
Anderson earned a spot on the podium for the third time in his young career, including his second time as runner-up. Alongside Rowell, the pair last week broke the record for most Brownlow Medal votes recorded by two teammates, also earning maiden All Australian honours in 2025.
Miller’s third place finish marks the fourth time the former captain has finished in the Top 3. The 29-year-old was an air of consistency in 2025, accumulating 24.7 disposals and 10.4 contested possessions per game across 23 matches.
Earlier in the night, Rowell also claimed his second coveted David Swallow Award (Players’ Player) while Bailey Humphrey’s breakout year was rewarded as the People First Bank Emerging Player. Humphrey also finished a career-best fourth in the Club Champion vote.
Sam Collins’ strong performances in both of the club’s inaugural finals matches earned him the first Hostplus Player of the Finals Series award.
Second year SUN and StreetSmarts SUNS Academy graduate Will Graham took out the Hostplus Most Professional, Ben King’s record 72-goal haul earned him the SIXT Leading Goal Kicker, Ned Moyle won Great Northern Brewing Co. VFL Player of the Year and Koby Coulson was presented as the StreetSmarts Male Academy Player of the Year.
Rowell joins an illustrious list of players to have won a SUNS Club Champion alongside Gary Ablett Jnr (four) Touk Miller (two), Tom Lynch (two), Sam Collins (two), Noah Anderson, Jarrod Witts, Jarrod Harbrow and David Swallow.
2025 GC SUNS Club Champion Top 10:
1st: Matt Rowell (72)
2nd: Noah Anderson (71)
3rd: Touk Miller (70)
4th: Bailey Humphrey (61)
5th: Sam Collins (59)
6th: Jarrod Witts (58)
6th: Ben Long (58)
8th: John Noble (49)
9th: Wil Powell (48)
10th: Ben King (47)
Voting Process: Players are assessed on their performance by Gold Coast’s match committee, with all players receiving a rating from 0-5 for each game they play. The match committee make a joint decision on each player, meaning the maximum votes a player can receive in any match is five.
2025 GC SUNS Club Champion Awards
Club Champion: Matt Rowell
Club Champion Runner-Up: Noah Anderson
Club Champion Third Place: Touk Miller
David Swallow Award (Players’ Player): Matt Rowell
Hostplus Most Professional: Will Graham
People First Bank Emerging Player: Bailey Humphrey
Hostplus Player of the Finals Series: Sam Collins
SIXT Leading Goal Kicker: Ben King
Great Northern Brewing Co. VFL Player of the Year: Ned Moyle
StreetSmarts Male Academy Player of the Year: Koby Coulson
2024 GC SUNS Club Champion Top 10
1st: Sam Collins (68)
2nd: Bodhi Uwland (56)
3rd: Sam Flanders (55)
4th: Matt Rowell (54)
5th: Noah Anderson (50)
6th: Mac Andrew (49)
7th: Wil Powell (43)
8th: Ben Long (39)
9th: Touk Miller (36)
10th: Jarrod Witts (35)
