Touk Miller to become the fastest player to reach 100 AFL games for the Gold Coast Suns

It’s been a mostly disappointing year for the Gold Coast Suns, but the continued emergence of Touk Miller is a silver lining at Carrara. Read what he had to say ahead of his 100th game.

Durability has Touk Miller set to become the fastest player to ever reach 100 games for Gold Coast and he believes it has given him the foundation needed to become one of the AFL’s A-grade midfielders.

Miller will reach the milestone in Gold Coast’s final game of the 2019 season on Saturday against GWS at Metricon Stadium.

“A hundred games doesn’t happen too often (in the AFL),” Miller said.

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“I like to think I worked pretty hard to get to this spot, especially for the one club as well.”

The 23-year-old will be the 14th player to reach 100 games for the Suns and while injury has hampered some of the club’s other stars reaching the mark quicker, Miller has been able to reach a century in his fifth season after missing just 10 games so far.

Touk Miller will play his 100th game for the Gold Coast Suns this Saturday. Picture: Jerad Williams

Miller said he had felt the positive effects it has had on his development.

“Especially from the leadership point of view, I think it’s helped in that space,” Miller said.

“I’m in my fifth year and probably have a bit of a senior role at the club.

“I still tend to have younger blokes look up to me in that space.

“Going forward hopefully the durability will last and I have a base now going forward to produce really good footy.

“I’d love to be an A-grade footballer and hopefully this type of base can get me there.”

Miller said there was an element of luck in his ability to stay fit, particularly at a club that has been smashed by injury in recent years, but there is no doubting Miller’s professionalism – he is regarded as one of the hardest workers on Gold Coast’s list – has played a huge part.

Touk Miller as a junior in his Victoria under 12's jersey in 2008.

“There is definitely luck involved. We have had a pretty poor run of injuries over the past five years when I have been here,” Miller said.

“In saying that, I try to make sure I’m out on the track as much as I can. I pride myself on my training and my standards around the club and how I hold myself.

“I’d like to think that has kept me in good stead, how I look after my body.”

Gold Coast have been unable to celebrate any on-field success in terms of finals and premierships in their first nine years in the AFL but Miller said he had no frustration with the speed of Gold Coast’s progression.

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“I still think we have progressed in that space. It might not seem as fast...on the outside but in terms of where we are going as a club, over the past five years I have seen a lot more progression,” Miller said.

“I’m so confident in the club, we have all the resources we need, all the players we need at the moment and all the coaching and high performance staff.

“All it will be down to will be hard work and us getting it done on the track.

“We have everything we need around us, it’s just a matter of the players producing the goods.”