Jamarra Ugle-Hagan has been handed what could be the last lifeline of his AFL career, a 12-month, clause-heavy contract with the Gold Coast Suns designed to give him a clean slate and the club complete protection.
After a difficult 16 months marred by off-field and mental health struggles, the 23-year-old former Western Bulldogs forward has agreed to a substantial pay cut, reported to be more than $700,000, to relocate to Queensland.
He will live with the Suns’ Indigenous Programs Coordinator, Jarrod Harbrow, as part of a carefully structured plan to help him rebuild his life and career.
‘It’s up to him; it’s always been up to him’
The move is being viewed by many as a make-or-break moment. Speaking on SEN Breakfast, journalist Sam Edmund said: “If things don’t work out for Jamarra, it won’t reflect poorly on Gold Coast, it will on Jamarra. It’s up to him; it’s always been up to him. He has to seize this opportunity, and it will be his last. It could be a redemption story we all love.”
Edmund added that Suns coach Damien Hardwick had been quietly working on the deal for months, describing Ugle-Hagan as “Hardwick’s project”. “There are a lot of protection mechanisms in place. It’s a 12-month contract with a trigger for a second. How much can go wrong in 12 months? If it goes wrong, they sack him.”
Suns list manager Craig Cameron echoed that the club is offering a structured environment for the young forward to rebuild. “The big thing is we are giving Jamarra a second chance, and it’s now up to him to commit to that second chance, but also use all the structures that we are going to put around him,” he told Trade Radio.