| Ethan Read | |
| Fullname: | Ethan Read |
| Nickname: | Creek,[1] The Unicorn[2] |
| Birth Date: | 7 July 2005 |
| Draftpick: | No. 9, 2023 AFL draft |
| Height: | 202cm |
| Weight: | 92kg |
| Originalteam: | Palm Beach Currumbin (QAFL) / Gold Coast Suns Academy (Talent League) |
| Position: | Ruck, Forward |
| Guernsey: | 20 |
| Years1: | 2024– |
| Games Goals1: | 2 (3) |
| Statsend: | round 5, 2024 |
Ethan Read is a professional Australian rules footballer who was selected by the Gold Coast Suns with the ninth pick in the 2023 AFL draft.[3]
Read was raised on the Gold Coast where he attended St Andrews Lutheran College throughout his upbringing.[4] He began playing junior football at nine years of age when signed up to play for the Palm Beach Currumbin Lions alongside future AFL teammates Jed Walter and Will Graham.[5] Read joined the Gold Coast Suns Academy at 13 years of age, but was not considered a standout in his early teenage years.[6]
At 16 years of age, Read experienced an 11 cm growth spurt and he was subsequently put on the radar of several AFL teams due to his newly developed 200 cm frame.[7] The following year he received national exposure for the first time when as a bottom ager he was selected to represent the Allies several times in the U18 National Championships as well as the Gold Coast Suns Academy in the U19 Talent League.[8] His performances at the representative and club levels led to Read being placed in the AFL's 30-player National Academy program on the eve of his draft year and he was generally considered a second round draft prospect at the time.[9]
Read appeared in the Allies' first U18 National Championship win and his performances earned him the starting ruckman position in the 2023 U18 All-Australian team.[10] A month later he made his VFL debut for the Gold Coast, accruing 12 disposals and four behinds.[11] In mid-November, he finished second in the national combine 2km time trial by running a 5:56 and was rated as highly as the third best prospect in the 2023 draft pool by some recruiters.[12] A week later, he was drafted to his hometown team the Gold Coast Suns with pick 9 in the 2023 AFL draft after the Suns elected to match a bid from the Geelong Cats.[13] Read grew up supporting the Gold Coast Suns[14] and described being drafted to the club with his friends as a "dream come true".[15]
Read made his AFL debut for the Suns at 18 years of age in round 4 of the 2024 season against the Greater Western Sydney Giants in Mount Barker and kicked a goal in his first game.[16]