AFL 2024: Gold Coast Suns star Sam Flanders opens up about anxiety and confidence battles

A star Suns ball-winner opens up about AFL anxiety, earning the confidence of his coach and teammates, and why he never wants to feel safe at the selection table.

Sam Flanders. Picture: Getty Images

When Sam Flanders was called into a meeting with Suns midfield coach Shaun Grigg he thought little of it. Until he opened the door to see Damien Hardwick and backline boss Josh Drummond also at the table.

“All I could feel was my heart beating out of my chest,” recalls Flanders.

“I was so nervous. I’d been in that situation too many times.”

Last weekend’s loss to Sydney marked Flanders’ 50th AFL appearance. It’s about half the number of games he might have hoped to have played at this stage of his career.

But the No. 11 selection in the 2019 draft has endured a rollercoaster beginning to life on the Gold Coast – and three weeks ago he thought it was about to hit another dip.

After years of being on the outer Sam Flanders has established himself as one of Gold Coast’s best players. Picture: Getty Images

Flanders had enjoyed a stellar start to the season, averaging 29 disposals and 3 clearances as part of a high-powered Suns midfield.

But ahead of the GWS clash in Adelaide for Gather Round, the 22-year-old was called into a meeting with his three coaches who told him about their plans to move him to halfback.

He wasn’t being dropped, but that only slightly tempered the nerves.

“I’d played one half of footy ever off halfback and that was in my U18 days,” Flanders said.

“I was nervous because I had no idea how I would go. There was a bit of pressure on me going back there to get the footy in my hands and create offensively.

“It was more the expectation I had on myself than anything else.”

Anxiety was nothing new to Flanders. It had become part and parcel of his time in the AFL.

Taken in the same 2019 draft as teammates Matt Rowell and Noah Anderson, he had to bide his time for an AFL debut while his fellow draftees opened the year in the AFL side.

It took until round 11 for Flanders to get his first senior start and he was dropped five games later, never to return that season.

He played 16 games in 2020 but just nine the following year. After three seasons he had 30 games on the board.

Being called into meeting rooms to be told he was dropped became too regular for his liking.

It is why, even during the incredible purple patch of form at the end of last season that saw him play the 10 best games of his career back-to-back-to-back, Flanders refused to take his place in the side for granted.

When his contract extension was announced at the Club Champion evening last September it was met with raucous applause. The Victorian had a host of suitors eager to lure him back home after a tough start to life on the Gold Coast and the incredible form he had shown at the back end of 2023.

Flanders says his teammates and coaches have given him the confidence to back himself even in the face of setbacks. Picture: Getty Images

The room stood and cheered the announcement, acknowledging his contribution to the club and what it meant for the future.

But Flanders had to be convinced to make the announcement on that stage. He still felt there was more to prove before truly earning the applause.

The mental side of his game is something he has had to work on since arriving at the Suns.

During the club’s pre-season camp on the Sunshine Coast last year, Flanders revealed he had worked closely with then-development coach Rhyce Shaw and club psychologist Tristan Coulter on what he perceived to be a “weakness in my game”.

Flanders felt he would fade in and out of games too easily if he made a mistake. It was keeping him from reaching the consistency levels required to be an AFL regular.

“Early in my career I went through phases where I tried to go above and beyond, always doing the extra touch stuff and extra vision, things like that,” he revealed.

“I think at the end of the day it created too much going on in my head. I felt like I was overthinking everything I was doing. I lost that natural instinct which is probably what got me here.”

While he has come a long way since then, as evidenced by his weekly performances, the nerves have not completely vanished.

In his three games from halfback Flanders has totalled 29, 34 and 34 disposals. He is the No. 3 ranked general defender in the AFL according to Champion Data.

But after a handful of skill errors against the Swans last weekend, he still left the SCG with doubts in his mind.

“I was a little bit rattled after the weekend,” Flanders admitted.

“It’s so hard to build up your confidence and it can get knocked down pretty quickly. There were some moments in the game … missed kicks and whatnot.

“There is always that, I suppose, fear there. Because I had so many years of being in and out (of the team). I don’t think I want to get to that point (of feeling my position is safe) because that’s probably when people get a bit content with where they’re at.

“I’m always trying to go out each week and prove why I should be in the team and hopefully positive things can come from that.”

Flanders says he never wants to feel ‘safe’ at the selection table despite years of uncertainty. Picture: Getty Images

At every opportunity Hardwick has told the footy world how highly he rates Flanders. His teammates have lauded his play, be it on-ball or in defence.

It would now take a serious string of poor performances for Hardwick to consider dropping the budding star.

After years of fighting to prove his worth, Flanders now owns the confidence of his coach and teammates – and he’s eager to repay the faith.

“The blokes around me … if I make a mistake or something it’s really easy to move on because they’ve all been so positive. They’ve given me great confidence moving into this role,” Flanders said.

“I don’t know how long it’s going to be for, if it’s for the whole season or not. We have a lot of good halfbacks in the VFL … if they come in and I go back to the midfield or forward, I’m more than happy to do that.”