The Gold Coast Suns' Round One fixture has been determined with Stuart Dew's coaching debut set to take place at Cazalys Stadium against North Melbourne on Saturday March 24.
The game will go ahead under lights with a 6:25pm AEST start time to be scheduled as it marks the eighth straight year that Cairns will host an AFL fixture.
Gold Coast Suns Chief Executive Mark Evans said the club was excited to start the season in the region of their talent academy.
"The SUNS are thrilled to be kicking off our 2018 season in Cairns against North Melbourne. A round one game in Cairns presents a wonderful opportunity to showcase the region ahead of what is always a much-anticipated opening round," Evans said.
“As a club we have established significant support in Cairns and throughout North Queensland. We are committed to playing our role in developing our game throughout the region, which is also a key recruitment catchment for the SUNS Talent Academy."
Gold Coast's traditional home ground of Metricon Stadium out of action until early June due to the 2018 Commonwealth Games and AFL General Manager Clubs and Broadcasting Travis Auld was excited that the club would continue to extend their relationship with the region.
Last week, the Queensland Government announced that the Suns had agreed to play a home game in the north of the state up until 2020, with Townsville to be the beneficiaries of the deal in 2019 or 2020.
“Australian Football is thriving in North Queensland, and we’re pleased the passionate fans in the region will help us kick off the 2018 Toyota AFL Premiership Season,” Mr Auld said.
“As in previous years, the AFL has worked closely with the Queensland Government, through Tourism and Events Queensland, Cairns Regional Council and AFL Cairns to secure the city the Premiership match and once again we thank them for their continued support."
