English poet Lady Mary Montgomerie Currie, writing under the pseudonym of Violet Fane in the late 1880s, is credited with penning the phrase “good things come to those who wait”.
And while it’s a stretch to link Lady Currie with the Gold Coast SUNS, her famous observation could hardly have been more appropriate for 2026 big improver Ned Moyle.
In a football industry in which loyalty is a fading quality, Moyle is a perfect endorsement for how older-timers like Lady Currie, an English poet, writer, and later an ambassadress in the British literary scene from 1872 until her death in 1905, would have liked it.
Moyle, drafted in the Mid-Season Rookie Draft on 2 June 2021, waited 675 days until his AFL debut. Then he waited 351 days to his third game, and 417 days to his 11th game. And then 353 days to his 14th game in Round 8 against the GWS Giants at People First Stadium.
So in 1,796 days as a professional AFL player from 2 June 2021 until 3 May 2026 he had gone to ‘work’ 14 times.
Yet if he was so inclined, when he pulled his dress suit out of the wardrobe and headed off to the SUNS Club Champion dinner on Saturday night, he might have thought back to Lady Currie’s wise words.
After two games in 2023, eight games in 2024 and three games in 2025 he’d squeezed 16 games into 109 days in 2026. It was a run that started in Round 8 against GWS Giants at People First Stadium and extended to Round 24 against St Kilda at Marvel Stadium, more than doubling his career total.
And he had something tangible to show for it … a share of eighth placing in the Club Champion with Matt Rowell.
Going into the Club Champion vote count, Moyle had given his teammates a seven-game start in the battle for a recognition that players value most highly, from those who know exactly what they’ve asked them to do. And not to do.
By that stage the SUNS were 4-3 and seventh on the AFL ladder as Sam Collins (19 votes) led the way from Christian Petracca (18), Bodhi Uwland (16), Ben Long (15), John Noble and Touk Miller (14), Mac Andrew (13), Wil Powell and Jarrod Witts (12), Leo Lombard and Bailey Humphrey (9), Noah Anderson (8) and Daniel Rioli (7).
From that point on, in what was a significant achievement for Moyle and a collective good showing from the younger brigade, Moyle ranked sixth in the voting.
It was Lombard (41) from Collins (37), Uwland (36), Andrew (35), Anderson (33), Moyle (32), Rowell (28), Humphrey (26), Oscar Adams (23) and Rioli (22).
Moyle polled 3-1-3-1-3-1-1-0-5-0-1-0-1-3-5-5, missing out only in away games against Fremantle, Adelaide and Carlton. He polled the maximum five votes against Collingwood and in the last two games against Brisbane and St Kilda.
His votes-per-game score of 2.06 was fourth overall behind only the three place-getters, Collins (2.57), Uwland (2.48) and Andrew (2.18), and ahead of Lombard (1.96), Rowell (1.83), Anderson (1.82), Miller (1.74), Noble (1.61) and Humphrey and Petracca (1.55).
It was due reward for a player who had pledged his loyalty to the SUNS not once but twice in the period while he was still finding his feet on the tourist strip.
Having arrived at the club on a standard two-year deal, the 206cm giant quickly signed a two-year extension which took him through to the end of 2024, and in 2024 signed a four-year extension through to the end of 2028.
There was enormous interest from other clubs once they realised what they’d overlooked in the draft, but, in true Lady Currie fashion, Moyle was in no hurry. He was content to learn his trade alongside then SUNS captain Witts and take his opportunities as they came.
SUNS football boss Craig Cameron confirmed Moyle had never threatened to look elsewhere and admitted he had taken over the No.1 ruck role from Witts quicker than expected.
“He backed us in because we backed him in by taking him when we did. He’s that sort of guy. He wanted to learn his craft at VFL level, and was lucky to have someone like Jarrod (Witts) to show him the way. For Ned to be able to train alongside Jarrod week in, week out, was massive.
“He’s got all the physical attributes to be a very good AFL ruckman for a long time. He’s a competitor and he can jump, which is handy under the new ruck rules, and he learns quickly.
“Plus, he’s an emerging leader. I like ruckmen who can lead,” Cameron said of the big No.23, who played in jumper No.49 in 2023-24 and No.21 in 2025 before settling on No.23 this year.
For an inexperienced ruckman who is still finding his feet in the AFL, it is a phenomenal achievement. Especially given that two years before he was drafted he was playing in the Third XVIII at Xavier College in Melbourne.
Moyle bounced between Xavier's second and third-grade sides as a Year 11 student in 2019 before COVID-19 wiped out the 2020 season.
In 2021 he played with the Oakleigh Chargers, the AFL Academy and Collingwood’s VFL side to rocket up the ‘hot prospects’ list ahead of the Mid-Season Draft.
He reportedly did a medical and interviewed with a dozen AFL clubs ahead of what was essentially a ‘second chance’ draft which has delivered some high-quality AFL players after being overlooked previously.
Moyle was one of 22 players taken in the Mid-Season Draft and one of a number of players who have either laid the platform for a long and successful AFL career, or look likely to do so.
Six players who, like Moyle, loom as excellent selections are Jai Newcombe, now co-captain at Hawthorn, James Peatling, originally taken by GWS, Sam Durham, shaping as a future Essendon captain, Lachlan McAndrew, a future ruck star originally taken by Sydney, Cooper Sharman, a 91-gamer with 106 goals at St Kilda, and Daniel Turner, who has also been touted as a possible future captain.
Collingwood might have thought they had a star in the making when Ash Johnson played in the 2022 preliminary final in his ninth game, but he was de-listed 18 games later in 2024.
Players chosen in the 2021 Mid-Season Rookie Draft, with their AFL games total, were:-
- NM – Jacob Edwards – did not play
- Haw – Jai Newcombe – 127
- Coll – Ash Johnson – 27
- Adel – Patrick Parnell – 17
- GC – Ned Moyle – 29
- Carl – Alex Mirkov – did not play
- St Kilda – Max Heath – 18 (now at Melbourne)
- GWS – James Peatling – 81 (now at Adelaide)
- Ess – Sam Durham – 111
- Rich – Matthew Parker – 11 (after 19 games at St Kilda)
- WC – Will Collins – did not play
- Syd – Lachlan McAndrew – 17 (now at Adelaide)
- Port – Jed McEntee – 52
- Bris – Kailin Lane – did not play
- Melb – Kye Declase – did not play
- NM – Charlie Ham – did not play
- Haw – Jackson Callow – 3
- Coll – Aiden Begg – did not play
- GC – Pass
- Carl – Jordan Boyd – 38
- St Kilda – Cooper Sharman – 91
- Ess – Pass
- WC – Connor West – 28
- Melb – Daniel Turner – 57
But the Moyle story was only beginning when he was drafted.
Due to the COVID situation at the time he was initially not allowed to join the SUNS, and instead lived and trained at Pottsville, northern NSW, under the guidance of club fitness and coaching staff.
Also, at the time of the draft he was in the middle of exams for a Bachelor of Commerce.
But he was undaunted, and said at the time: “It’s been pretty hectic but it’s been a whirlwind and so much fun. I’m pretty keen (to relocate) – it makes it a lot easier when you’re up on the sunny Gold Coast. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity so there’s no complaints here certainly.”
And there’s certainly no complaints from the SUNS hierarchy.
