Damien Hardwick concedes fears over contested beast Matt Rowell’s longevity

Damien Hardwick has conceded the Suns need to better manage Matt Rowell’s workload amid fears his own tenacity could cut his time short at the top level.

Gold Coast coach Damien Hardwick believes Matt Rowell is at risk of being “past his best at 28” if the Suns don’t come up with a way to “save him from himself” amid a downturn in form for the former No. 1 draft pick.

Rowell, 23, burst out of the blocks and was among the AFL’s top-ranked midfielders through the first 11 games of the season. Arguably the best contested ball and clearance player in the competition when in-form, his stellar start to the season underpinned the Suns’ early success.

But he has seen a steep decline in output since round 11 and in the wake of the Suns’ loss to Brisbane last weekend, Hardwick hinted his young midfield bull’s battery had started to run dry.

Rowell’s bread and butter contested possession and clearance numbers have suffered the most in recent weeks, falling 29 per cent and 35 per cent respectively from his brilliant start to the campaign.

Rowell’s form has dipped after a blistering start to the year. Picture: Chris Hyde/Getty Images

Ahead of Friday night’s clash with West Coast – which is now a must-win if Gold Coast harbours any hopes of featuring in September – the Suns coach conceded something would have to change if they wanted Rowell to remain at his best deep into his career.

“He gets smashed every week. He’s such a competitive beast. I don’t think I’ve seen anything quite like his combativeness,” Hardwick said.

“It’s testament to him. We play ‘get up and go’ soccer (at training) and he’s dive tackling. You’ve got to save him from himself.

“We want Matthew Rowell playing until he’s 33, 34. The way he’s going at the moment, the battering he cops week-in, week-out, and most of it is self-inflicted … we don’t want to see him past his best at 28.”

Rowell cops a stray hand from Nat Fyfe in a tackle. Picture: Paul Kane/Getty Images

Rowell’s longevity has clearly become a concern for Hardwick, who must now somehow strike a balance between using one of his most prized assets where he can have the most impact, while not bleeding him dry in the process.

It’s a juggling act that will likely continue into the off-season.

“That’s our job to figure out … and work with him,” Hardwick said.

“We’re not going to have the answers this season, but another pre-season will help us with that. We want him to spend some more time forward.”

Matt Rowell is an absolute beast 😤#AFLSunsEaglespic.twitter.com/RfhYqZ7XsN

— AFL (@AFL) April 28, 2024

On the surface, simply resting Rowell forward – like many teams do with their top midfielders – would seem a safe move.

But for a player whose game is built on contested ball, a simple position switch would be unlikely to do anything more than take Rowell away from where the ball is. When in-contest, the hard nut would still attack the ball with the same fervour as if he was starting in the middle.

“Rowelly is the kind of guy who wants to be around the footy, naturally,” Suns co-captain Jarrod Witts said.

“If you look at the way he play, it’s combative footy and over the course of the year that’s going to take a toll. I think it’s up to us to help him out.

“He’ll obviously work through it. He’s as tough and competitive as they come, so he’s not going to back down. Can we protect him in other ways? We’ll look at that.”

Originally published as Damien Hardwick concedes fears over contested beast Matt Rowell’s longevity