As the second week of pre-season comes to a close, SUNS media caught up with our four newest recruits for their thoughts after their first session as Gold Coast SUNS players.
Bailey Humphrey:
“I’m loving it. I don’t have a microphone in my hand, it’s a footy now.
“I was paired up with Touk (Miller) for a lot of the session – he just does not stop running. But it was unreal to be with him for the first day. He’s just always on the move and I got caught behind a few times so I had to make sure I stayed with him.
“I looked down at my watch and realised I’d done 9km already, so it was a pretty intense first session.
“Oscar (Faulkhead) has taken me under his wing a little bit. I’m living with him and the host family at the moment, he’s shown me around a bit which has been good.
“They’ve started calling me Humphrey Bear on the track so that might stick too.”
Lloyd Johnston:
“I loved every bit of the session today. The favourite moment would have been when the boys got around me after a good kick, made me really feel like I was welcomed to the club.
“It was a lot of running – non-stop. It was pretty windy. You might say here that it’s warm but for me it’s still cold.
“It’s good to be back here, I love each and every one of the boys. I’ve been sticking pretty close to Ben Long and Sean Lemmens – I knew Ben from Darwin and Sean is just a great role model.
“I had a chat with Stuey and he just kept telling me ‘do you, do what you do best.’ I’ve had to keep telling myself ‘I’m actually here at the club, I’m a part of this now’.”
Jake Stein:
“All the boys were really welcoming – they’re a great group of lads.
“It’s good to be back training hard. The wind made it pretty hard to impress the boys and the coaches on the first day, but I got a few decent kicks away in the session so it ended up alright.
“A few of the boys have messaged me over the last few days. Rory Atkins knows a few of my mates so I’ve been messaging him a bit and he’s been really welcoming.
“It’s the same as it was six years ago – I didn’t know too many faces at the Giants but it’s good to have good lads here to make it all easier.
Connor Blakely:
“The conditions were pretty challenging but the boys were right into it. There were really good numbers on the track.
“I was able to do most of the session aside from a couple of things – still just easing into it a bit. I got in pretty late last night, Sam Collins picked me up from the airport and I’m staying with him for a week which will be good.
“I played at Freo with Sam and Lachie Weller too – we were drafted together so we lived together for a bit too and he was one of my best mates at the club. I’ve met a few of the other boys too, there’s still plenty of boys to meet on Monday, but it’s been nice.
“Sam lives on the creek in Tallebudgera Creek so I’ll probably try hit the beach on the weekend and explore a bit. I’ve been up here to the Coast a few times before and I just love it up here.”
