Rhyce Shaw announced as Gold Coast Suns AFLW coach

Rhyce Shaw is back coaching in the AFL, but it will be a new role for the former Kangaroos senior coach, as he makes some history with his newest gig.

Rhyce Shaw will coach Gold Coast’s AFLW team. Picture: Chris Hyde/Getty Images

Gold Coast has unveiled Rhyce Shaw as its next AFLW coach on a four-year deal.

Shaw, 43, will become the first person to have held a senior coaching role at both AFL and AFLW level when he officially steps into the role in May.

He previously coached North Melbourne’s AFL side in 2019-20.

“I feel honoured to be given the opportunity to coach this team and I’m excited by how far I believe we can develop and what we can achieve for the Gold Coast,” Shaw said.

“I’m a coach at heart and I am very passionate about this football club and making our people and players better.

“The players who have been here for a while are all looking to take that next step and we’ve recently brought in some high quality talent through our academy to help us on that journey.

“There is no ceiling on what we can achieve, we will have expectations but I’m looking forward to that challenge and so should all our fans.”

Rhyce Shaw has a new role. Picture: Michael Klein

Shaw is a highly respected figure at the Suns who has worn multiple hats in his five years at the Austworld Centre.

The former Collingwood and Sydney footballer joined the club in 2021 as the AFL program’s head of development, before transitioning into a director of coaching role with the Suns Academy in 2023.

Up until his AFLW coaching appointment, Shaw had also worked closely with players at all levels within the club on skill acquisition.

Gold Coast CEO Mark Evans said Shaw was the “standout candidate” in the Suns’ search for its next AFLW coach.

“Through his time at the Gold Coast Suns, Rhyce has worked closely with a number of our AFLW players and dedicated countless hours to developing the next generation of players coming through,” Evans said.

“We are firm in our ambition to win AFLW premierships and are confident Rhyce is the coach who can help us take the next steps to deliver on our mission as a football club.”

Shaw’s appointment comes on the heels of a turbulent season for the Suns, who went from finalists in 2023 to 17th last year winning just one of their 11 games.

The fallout from their disastrous season included the sacking of senior coach Cameron Joyce and subsequent trade request from captain Tara Bohanna in December.

Originally published as Rhyce Shaw announced as Gold Coast Suns AFLW coach