Sam Day Biography

Sam Day has played his last game for the Suns after not being offered a contract for 2025.

"While I am disappointed to be finishing my time with the Suns, I am grateful for everything I have been able to achieve in my football career and the relationships I have made along the way," Day said.

"It's been a challenging journey at times, but I wouldn't change it for anything, and know those setbacks have helped shape the person I am today."

Gold Coast select Sam Day with pick No.2 in the 2023 Pre-Season Draft.

Gold Coast locks away two important pieces for its future, with Sam Day and Sean Lemmens both signing contract extensions.

Day has signed on for another two seasons, while Lemmens will be with the Suns until at least the end of 2024 after signing on for three.

After shedding 6kg in a month and reviving his career, Sam Day signs a two-year contract extension with Gold Coast.

"I feel like the club have put a lot of time into me," Day said.

"We've got a good young group who's willing to learn.

"I'm huge on family and that's one of the big things around the club. That's what I feel up here."

Sam Day has been stuck in the NEAFL thus far in 2019, and has had to watch as player after player has been called up ahead of him.

"We're in constant dialogue with Sam. He's aware he needs to push into the side," Suns coach Stuart Dew said.

"He's got to really dominate the NEAFL. We've seen patches. His form's been building."

Gold Coast's worst fears have been confirmed, with key position player Sam Day ruled out for the season after dislocating his hip.

Day suffered the horrific injury in the opening quarter of the JLT Community Series win over the Brisbane Lions and successfully underwent surgery on Monday evening.

"He’s now in rehab and will miss the whole year," Gold Coast's football manager Marcus Ashcroft said.

"So we're more concerned with getting him into a rehab program the next bit of time. That'll be non-weight bearing until six weeks."

Suns football manager Marcus Ashcroft says Sam Day will likely miss most of the 2017 season after dislocating his right hip against the Brisbane Lions during the JLT Community Series.

"It's a once-in-a-lifetime injury I think in footy circles anyway. We haven't heard of it before, but Sam does have a fractured hip dislocation," Ashcroft said.

"His hip did dislocate, it took a bit of bone with it, so it is fairly significant. He gets surgery later today (Monday) and more than likely will miss the majority of the year.

"Even our medical team can't remember a time when someone's done something as significant as this. It's more like a car accident injury.

"Unfortunately for Sam who's had such a great pre-season, he's going to miss most of the year."

Sam Day's season could be over after he suffered a horrific hip injury in the opening quarter of Sunday's JLT Community Series match against the Brisbane Lions.

Day was contesting a ball with Lion Jack Frost when he crumpled to the ground in agony.

Initially it appeared to be a knee or hamstring injury, but the Suns confirmed at quarter time it was a dislocated hip.

It was put back in place before the 24-year-old was taken to hospital for further scans.

After being drafted as a forward, Sam Day says he has learnt to enjoy playing at both ends of the ground.

"It took a bit of maturing, growing up and going through the process of learning those positions," Day said.

"Now I see it as a positive, especially if that's what the team needs. I've really embraced it over the last couple of years and I see it as a pretty exciting thing."

Sam Day signs a new three-year deal with Gold Coast.

"I’ve been enjoying my footy and I love living here, so I never considered playing anywhere else," Day said.

"I also couldn’t leave my teammates.

"We all came here as 17 or 18-year-olds and although we have gone through some tough times we can all see the direction we are heading and if we can persevere through those difficult times it is going to be so much more rewarding at the end of the day."

Sam Day will miss four to six weeks with a dislocated elbow.

After struggling to keep up with his teammates over pre-season, Gold Coast key forward Sam Day has been relieved to find out why – a 10cm bacterial cyst in his stomach.

"This has been a long running one, ever since he started back he hasn't been himself,'' Suns football manager Marcus Ashcroft told the Courier Mail.

"We didn't know what was wrong, we weren't sure if we needed to push him harder. Eventually in late December it became obvious there was a medical issue.

"You can imagine as a player and you want to get better, and he is certainly a driven person who takes pride in his performance, he was seeing everyone else getting better and he was falling behind and he started to doubt himself.''

As he approaches the 50-game mark, Sam Day is slowly starting to deliver on his limitless promise, and the young Gold Coast forward puts it down to a renewed dose of confidence.

"I just feel like I've got the ability, and now I just need to have a go at things to show I can do stuff which I've always believed I can do but have almost been too shy to show," Day said.

"I think I've been able to show I'm athlete that I was projected to be when they drafted me.

"I feel like I can now start repaying them for their faith and the actual times they've given me games that I probably wouldn't have got at other clubs."

Sam Day says he is still learning how to play the game at AFL level.

"The biggest thing for me is watching how and where people run and what times, just trying to get that movement and fluency in my game," Day said.

"I'm trying to learn how to play the game as a key forward. I used to play at school and it was 'do whatever you want'.

"Learning the game at AFL standard has been really good for me. The little things like getting separation for yourself, all the little techniques."

Gold Coast wants Kurt Tippett but will not use SA youngsters Sam Day or Daniel Gorringe as bargaining chips with Adelaide.

"We've always spoken about not wanting to compromise the growth of our young list. We want to make sure that we keep our young players together for as long as we can and we don't want to compromise that," Gold Coast football manager Marcus Ashcroft said.

"We'll look at options to make sure that we get a good player like Kurt into the side, but not to the detriment of breaking up our young talent."

North Melbourne coach Brad Scott says Jack Ziebell's suspension strikes at the heart of the game.

"It was a bitterly disappointing day and a really sad day in my mind for AFL football. I think it strikes at the heart of what this game's about," Scott said.

"Since I've been involved in footy my whole life I've never ever seen a player get suspended for making the ball his sole objective, [or] attacking the ball with ferocity but being punished for the incidental contact that occurred because of that attitude in going for the ball."

Ross Lyon has given a stinging assessment of critics vocal against his miserly game plan, calling them minnows desperate to be heard.

"The teams I coach, have they played perfect football the whole time? No. Clearly they've played some great footy for the majority of the time," Lyon said.

"At the end of the day there's a lot of minnows out there that like to get heard above the pack."

Key-position player Steven May signs a new deal with Gold Coast, extending his contract to 2014.

"I am really excited to re-sign for a further two years," May said.

"The players are committed to creating success here on the coast and we believe we are building something special."

Ben Cousins has entered his fifth day in a Perth hospital as fears grow about his health following a fall at a rehabilitation clinic.

Young Gold Coast forward Sam Day will not play again this season after knee surgery today to repair menisus damage.

"This type of injury generally sidelines a player for six to eight weeks, and we believe it is in Sam's best interests to concentrate on his rehabilitation and prepare him self for the 2012 season," Suns football manager Marcus Ashcroft said.

"We have been really impressed with Sam's first season at AFL level and while it is a disappointing way for him to finish his year, we are really excited about his future with the club."

Sam Day makes his AFL debut for Gold Coast at the Gabba with 7 disposals (a kick and 6 handballs), 2 marks, a tackle and 1 hitouts in an 8-point win over Brisbane.

Gold Coast coach Guy McKenna says young defender Josh Toy will learn a good lesson from Sunday's big loss to Essendon after Toy's opponent kicked a career-high 8 goals.

It was a nasty message for him today and I'm sure it's going to leave a nasty taste in his mouth, but great for him," McKenna said after the loss.

"I know Josh, and I know what he's like and I know what his spirit's like, and I just fear for the Brisbane bloke he's going to play on next week."

Campbell Brown is involved in a number of physical skirmishes with Bulldogs Callan Ward and Barry Hall in his first visit to Melbourne as a Gold Coast Sun.

"We know that the strength he brings to the group is his attack on the footy," Gold Coast Guy McKenna said.

"We know he plays it hard and tough and for him it's about making sure we play within the rules because we know what he provides for the footy side and the best place for him to provide that is on the field."