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Witts chuffed but still thirsty after high AFL praise

Witts chuffed but still thirsty after high AFL praise

Perth Now29-07-2025
Jarrod Witts is still waiting for that coffee as the Gold Coast ruckman shrugs off the high praise ahead of his next duel.
The Suns tall was in top form in Saturday's 66-point defeat of Brisbane, prompting coach Damien Hardwick to push his case for All-Australian honours.
Witts polled two votes in the Marcus Ashcroft Medal count won by Matt Rowell, who had a career-high 37 touches and a staggering 15 clearances on Saturday.
Adamant Witts is under-appreciated around the league, Hardwick said the 32-year-old 198-gamer deserved to be shouted coffees daily by the midfielders he creates for.
"You want that recognition," Witts said on Tuesday. "Definitely prefer it that way than him saying I'm going no good.
"I try to keep it as simple as possible, to just compete and to get my guys in the game.
"On the weekend it worked out quite well, they all had great games.
"Simple's good and it's working at the moment."
Captain Noah Anderson (33 disposals) was crucial too, breaking the game open late in the second quarter before being tagged in the second half.
Witts said the emerging pair were terrific teammates, albeit a little tight.
"I love those guys, but it's tough getting a coffee out of Noah and Rowelly," Witts smirked.
"He (Rowell) owes me more than one, that's for sure."
Though somewhat bashful off the field, the 209cm Witts has become a focal point of the Suns since his move from Collingwood in 2016.
This season has reaped a club-best 12 wins since the club's 2011 admission that has them on the cusp of a maiden finals campaign .
Gold Coast (12-6) are eighth, but are only four points behind fourth with a game in hand and face four of their last five games against bottom-eight sides.
The first of those is against Richmond on Saturday at Carrara. The Tigers (5-14) boast an early-season upset victory over the Suns at Marvel Stadium.
Happy to deflect talk about his All-Australian chances, Witts already has eyes on his next assignment in Tigers veteran Toby Nankervis.
"He's been a great player for a long time. I really enjoy coming up against the best and he's one of those," Witts said.
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