New recruits, John Noble and Daniel Rioli, are proving to be great additions to the Gold Coast SUNS’ explosive backline.

SUNS Assistant Coach, Josh Drummond, is excited about the value both players will bring to the Gold Coast.

“They’ve played a lot of football and come from similar systems, so they've been able to fit in really seamlessly,” Drummond said. 

“They’re great additions off the field and in the way that they’ve added to the group, which is every bit as important as on.

“I’m really excited to see what they’ll add to our defensive mix.”

Former Magpie, John Noble, was Pick 14 in the 2019 mid-season and with 112 AFL matches under his belt, brings a wealth of experience to the SUNS. 

“John’s a really good communicator and organiser out there as well, which is something that’s really undervalued and something that we need a lot of,” Drummond said.

After suffering a left knee injury at the beginning of pre-season, Drummond confirmed prized recruit, Daniel Rioli, is fit and fired up. 

“Rioli has worked really hard physically off the track to get himself fit, and now he’s building right back in,” Drummond said.

“He’s ready to go and looking terrific.”

Former SUNS VFL Premiership Coach, Drummond, highlighted the duo’s speed as a game changer to the backline in 2025. 

“Obviously they play the game with great skill and speed, so we want to play a pretty fast tempo game, for the most part,” Drummond said.

“We felt last year our backs grew significantly from a synergy and from a defensive point of view with the introduction of Bodhi Uwland, Wil Powell, Charlie Ballard, Mac Andrew, Sam Collins and those guys. So, to bring those rebounding types in will really give us hopefully a defensive group that's really hard to play against in all phases of the game.

“We’re looking forward to seeing the boys play more and more footy together over the coming weeks in preparation for Opening Round.”

The SUNS take on Collingwood and Brisbane Lions at People First Stadium in a match simulation on Thursday February 20, with free entry for fans from 4:30pm.