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Dew some good luck: Suns sign Swan Stuart in coach poach

Expert
4th October, 2017
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Stuart Dew. (Photo by Daniel Kalisz/Getty Images)
Expert
4th October, 2017
21
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The Gold Coast Suns have selected Sydney’s Stuart Dew as the man to hopefully take them from irrelevant rabble to top of the table.

News broke on Wednesday night that Dew would be the next coach of the Gold Coast Suns, and the club officially confirmed the news on Thursday morning.

“I am incredibly grateful for this opportunity and look forward to moving to the Gold Coast with my family and getting stuck into the challenge ahead,” Dew said.

“I would like to acknowledge the Sydney Swans for the development and experience they have given to me to help me secure this position.

“In particular, I’d like to thank John Longmire, Tom Harley, Dean Moore and Andrew Ireland for the education and assistance that they have provided to me.

“I will move to the Gold Coast as soon as possible and I look forward to meeting our players and staff and working with them as we develop a clear pathway to future success for our fans in the coming years.

“My experience tells me that the success we all crave comes on the back of genuine buy in and commitment from all and a sustained selfless team approach, that’s where I want to take the Gold Coast Suns.”

He faces an uphill battle, but the same could be said of nine in ten new senior coaches when they take on their first job.

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From my perspective, Dew is an excellent choice for Gold Coast, and certainly the best option that was available of the untried coaches in the competition.

A mature recruit would’ve been excellent and the Suns did venture partway down this path, making overtures to both North Melbourne’s Brad Scott and Port Adelaide’s Ken Hinkley.

However in the absence of a proven prospect being available, the Suns needed to go with a new face but have made a great choice.

Dew is clearly highly rated in the industry, having been linked to both the Melbourne and Brisbane senior jobs in recent years.

He’s been part of a successful team at the Sydney Swans for several years now so has plenty of experience around what it takes to reach and win finals.

On top of that he can bring a unique perspective on working in the northern states and will have intimate personal experiences of the challenges clubs face there and how to combat them.

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