Suns to chase slice of Adelaide history without 'irreplaceable' star

Gold Coast has never won at Adelaide Oval and will have to overcome the loss of Touk Miller against red-hot Adelaide on Sunday

Touk Miller breaks away from Brayden Maynard during the match between Gold Coast and Collingwood at People First Stadium in round 18, 2025. Picture: AFL Photos

GOLD Coast will lean on midfield depth in covering the loss of "irreplaceable" leader Touk Miller as it seeks to end a long run of losses in Adelaide.

Never in their history have the Suns won at Adelaide Oval, where they take on the third-placed Crows on Sunday in a clash with top-eight ramifications for both sides.

Gold Coast has a barren 0-11 all-time record at the venue, including six losses from as many meetings with Adelaide, who coach Damien Hardwick declared the form team of the competition.

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"It's a formidable challenge, a hostile environment, but one that we're certainly looking forward to," Hardwick said on Friday.

"The parameters of the ground are a little bit different, but we know if we play our best footy we're going to provide some headaches for the Crows.

"In saying that, they're going to give us a few too."

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Gold Coast will seek to break the drought without experienced midfielder Miller, who will miss at least a month with a hamstring injury sustained in last week's upset of ladder-leader Collingwood.

"There's no other player in the league close to Touk in the way he can run both ways and the way he goes about his football," Hardwick said.

"He's irreplaceable, so we won't replace a like for like. It will be a different look for us in that midfield mix.

"But we still think we'll be very capable in that part of the ground. We've got a great mix of players that are capable of going through there."

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Hardwick echoed Crows counterpart Matthew Nicks' sentiments around the potentially fiery encounter between Riley Thilthorpe and Mac Andrew, declaring the personal battle a drawcard for the fixture.

The pair repeatedly clashed during the Gold Coast's controversial one-point win in round four, when a bitter aftermath involved Suns defender Andrew getting in Thilthorpe's face.

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Thilthorpe is coming off a career-best six-goal haul in Adelaide's win over the Western Bulldogs.

"They're two combative, competitive players and that's a thing that we love about sport; the competitive nature of individuals," Hardwick said.

"They'll play on each other predominantly this week and they'll be playing on each other for the next 10 to 12 years, I'd imagine.

"It's really exciting for not only Adelaide and the Gold Coast Suns, but for the AFL in general."

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