Bodhi Uwland this week became the first StreetSmarts SUNS Academy member to win a spot in the All-Australian squad.
In fitting recognition of his outstanding fourth season in the AFL, Uwland was named on Monday in the 46-man All-Australian squad alongside Ben King, with the pair unfortunately missing out on final selection on Tuesday evening.
He is the 10th SUNS player to be recognised in this fashion after Gary Ablett Jnr, Noah Anderson, Tom Lynch, Touk Miller, Matt Rowell, Sam Collins, Ben Long, Jarrod Witts and King while wearing the red and yellow.
One of six SUNS to have played every game this year, Uwland has played 69 of a possible 71 games over the past three years after making three appearances in 2023.
Capable of playing on small and medium-sized opponents while offering plenty of dash from the back half, he has confirmed his standing as one of the best utility defenders in the competition.
Having amassed a career-high 531 possessions this year, he ranked fourth behind Anderson (608), John Noble (605) and Miller (574), and was fifth for contested possessions, uncontested possessions and contested marks, third for one-percenters, and third for game time at 86.2%.
He had his first 30-possession game in Round 10 against Port Adelaide, when he had 31 and kicked his only goal of the year, and was among the leading SUNS vote-getters in the AFL Coaches Association Player of the Year award when voting went in camera after Round 21.
It was Christian Petracca (38), Anderson (32), Rowell (36), Uwland (31) and Collins (25), with votes from games against GWS, Brisbane and St Kilda still to be added.
Having only turned 23 on 25 July, Uwland is younger than all but five members of the extended All-Australian squad. Murphy Reid (Fremantle) is the baby of the group at 20, with Nick Watson (Hawthorn), Connor O’Sullivan (Geelong) and Logan Morris (Brisbane) all 21, and Will Ashcroft (Brisbane) 22.
The SUNS’ No.6 has also played fewer AFL games than all but three members of the squad, and is one of eight yet to reach 100 games.
Reid (37) is the least experienced, ahead of Morris (67) and Watson (64), with Uwland (73) below Ashcroft and Geelong’s Ollie Dempsey (81), Port Adelaide’s Jason Horne-Francis (84) and Fremantle’s Jy Amiss (93).
King kicked 60 goals to finish third in the Coleman Medal behind Sydney’s Charlie Curnow (69) and Brisbane’s Morris (63), and was the only player in the league to kick at least one goal in every game.
He has led the SUNS goal-kicking six times in 2020 and 2021 and 2023 - 2026.
Uwland joins a SUNS All-Australian history which has seen five players win selection in the All-Australian team – Ablett (2011-2014), Lynch (2016), Miller (2021, 2022), Anderson and Rowell (2025).
He is the sixth SUNS to have been chosen in the preliminary squad without making the final team – Witts (2022), Anderson (2023, 2024), Collins (2024, 2025), and King (2025, 2026) and Long (2025).
