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“Talk is cheap”: How Hardwick would be selling the Suns narrative to Rowell
Andrew Slevison, SEN • February 5th, 2025 11:14 am
What could the Gold Coast Suns be trying to sell Matt Rowell right now?
The gun midfielder is the target for a number of Victorian clubs including Geelong, Collingwood, Essendon and the Western Bulldogs, but the Suns are obviously very keen to keep him.
Suns coach Damien Hardwick spoke with several media outlets on Tuesday, explaining how the club sat down with the 23-year-old earlier this week to sell him the narrative.
Kane Cornes and Sam Edmund discussed particular comments in the Herald Sun from Hardwick who admitted that he normally wouldn’t get involved in player dealings but felt compelled to on this occasion.
Cornes wondered what Hardwick could be saying to persuade Rowell to stay.
“It is rare and even Hardwick spoke about it, but clearly this is an exception and he has got a soft spot for Matty Rowell,” Cornes said on SEN Breakfast.
“Hardwick was the top three toughest players I ever played with. He would just dive head-first onto a footy and Rowell plays the same way. So clearly there is that connection and Hardwick loves him.
“This would have stung, the revelation that he met with Geelong and almost panic stations for the club in terms of how they’re going to keep him.
“But it’s pointless, isn’t it? Talk is cheap, talk is so cheap at Gold Coast. How much talk can we have at Gold Coast?
“I’m not criticising Damien Hardwick. This is what you should be doing. Sit him down, present, ‘this is where we’re going to be in three, four, five years’.
“But I’m sick of talk at Gold Coast and I’m sure Matty Rowell is sick of talk at Gold Coast. The only thing that’s going to get him to stay is a firm belief that this team has the prospect of winning a premiership in his time or the next two three years.”
Edmund says finals are a must if the Suns want to keep the former No.1 draft pick.
“I would say he has to see something this year materialise in front of him,” he said.
“They have to play finals. And he doesn’t hide away from that though, Dimma. He did say we’ve got fo fulfil our end of the bargain, Matt’s a winner who wants to play in winning football sides and we haven’t been able to sustain that thus far which is something we’re looking to change.
“He acknowledges that.”
Cornes again questioned the talk coming out of the Suns.
Last year they were certain they’d play finals in Hardwick’s first year at the helm, but ultimately failed in their quest.
With a soft draw, a stacked list and a revitalised three-time premiership coach, it was an “unbelievably poor year”, according to Cornes.
He added: “What can he (Hardwick) say in a presentation to Matt Rowell in February that is going to convince him to stay?
“Nothing. Until we are at Round 12, Round 17, finals, do they win a final, how do they compete in finals - there’s nothing you can say.
“Clearly finances and where Matt Rowell wants to live is going to have a significant impact on his decision as well.
“It’s pointless for Damien Hardwick to be doing this right now because until they put their white shorts on and jump on a plane and play away from Metricon, can they win those games, can they compete, are they on track to play finals this year - there’s nothing you can say.
“I’m just kind of sick of the talk coming out of Gold Coast.
“Last year was a disaster. They had the softest draw you’ve ever seen. The AFL had their hash browns out on a silver platter and said, ‘here it is, I’m serving you a crispy hash brown in the morning, this is an absolute golden ticket to play finals’.
“Every poor team they played twice, the lack of finalists they played, here is a silver platter ticket to finals and they couldn’t win away from home and only won 11 with the squad they’ve got and the draft concessions they’ve had.
“It was an unbelievably poor year, particularly with this coach who they said time is now, there’s no ceiling on this, we must play finals when they sacked Stuey Dew and they delivered that.
“You can do all the talking you want, he can sit down over a nice lunch with a nice presentation, it’s meaningless until we see them actually deliver for once.”
Edmund concluded: “I wouldn’t say I would be panicking if I was a Suns supporter, I’m still expecting him to stay, but if they have a ho-hum sort of year I reckon there could be a chance he could leave.”
Rowell is out of contract at the end of the 2025 season and finals are a must for the club making this arguably the most important year of Gold Coast’s existence.
