Eyefully good that Luke’s back training

IRISHMAN Luke Towey has become the masked man for Gold Coast as he edges towards a return following an incident that left him with a fractured eye.

Towey is back doing full training this week and sporting a mask resembling something used by skiers on the snow.

The Suns category B rookie suffered the injury while playing in a scratch match against Fremantle at the start of July.

Suns football manager Jon Haines said it occurred when Towey copped a stray elbow to the eye during a contest.

“He is back training and will wear a protective eye guard after taking some time for it to remedy itself,” Haines said.

“He was a bit frustrated because he wants to play and it was a bit of an unusual one.”

Towey was a star of Gaelic football but impressed Suns recruiters with his speed and agility last year, clocking 2.82 seconds for a 20m sprint.

Haines said Towey had been developing quickly in the Suns system since his arrival but the health of the list meant it would be hard for anyone outside the best 22 to crack into the team.

“He is really eager to keep progressing and improve,” Haines said.

“He is savouring every moment. Luke is keen, committed and has a great attitude so we can’t fault him.

“It’s hard to say when he will get his chance because he has a lot of development in front of him still, which he understands, and we have good availability at the moment.”

It adds to a tough year for the Suns recruit, who found himself stuck in Ireland for a couple of months during the COVID-19 forced break to the AFL season after he returned home to see his family.

Luke Towey looks on during a Gold Coast training session.