Alex Sexton is on the verge of becoming the Gold Coast SUNS Talent Academy inaugural debutant, with the 18-year-old, Queenslander set to make his AFL debut against the Western Bulldogs in Darwin on Saturday night.

One of the most promising young players in the country, Alex Sexton was pre-listed as a 2011 NAB AFL Draft local talent access selection with the GC SUNS prior to the 2011 AFL Draft.

A member of the GC SUNS and AFL/AIS Academy, Sexton was used as an underage top-up player with GC SUNS reserves in 2011 and was the first player nominated for the NAB NEAFL Rising Star Award from the SUNS camp.

The talented youngster also toured Europe with the AIS/AFL Academy squad last year. He won the Alan McLean Medal as the division two Best & Fairest and the Queensland MVP at the 2010 NAB Australian U16 Championships and in 2011 was a Queensland Under 18 representative.

Sexton was one of the first juniors to join the Gold Coast SUNS Talent Academy, an innovative program that provides young athletes with a unique opportunity to participate in a first class sport and education experience facilitated by AFL Queensland and the Gold Coast SUNS.

The Gold Coast SUNS Talent Academy is a multi-level coaching program for aspiring players aged between 12 and 18 years. It forms a key stage in the pathway from junior sport through to a possible career as an AFL player at the highest level – without leaving Queensland.

The Academy caters for young athletes in the Northern NSW and Gold Coast region as well as Far North Queensland (Rockhampton to Cape York).

For more information on the Gold Coast SUNS Academy click here.