Big risk pays off for Miles ahead of prelim showdown

Zac Miles took a risk when he came to Redcliffe for season 2025.

The electric fullback had been with the Sunshine Coast Falcons for all three years of his Hostplus Cup career and was fresh off his most impressive campaign yet in which he owned the No.1 jersey.

But for the Toowoomba product, there was a desire for more.

Keen for this new start, Miles decided the Dolphins was where he needed to be to advance his career – even if it meant a potential battle for the No.1 jersey with long-time fullback, Trai Fuller.

“I thought just this year it was time for a fresh start,” Miles said.

“With Trai going down (with an ACL injury), I thought it’d give me a good opportunity to get a decent chunk of the year in under some good staff and a good club and a good coach like Eric (Smith).

“My goal at the start of the year was that, even when Trai came back, just keep a spot in the team.

“It was definitely a big risk that I talked to my fiancé and my family a lot about… having a good, solid spot there (at Sunshine Coast) and then coming down here, making that risk of, ‘am I going to be in the team and am I going to be able to keep my position?’

“But I thought it was just a risk I was willing to take, whether I got half a year or three quarters, I thought that I’d get a lot out of it here at such a good club as the Dolphins.”

Now, as Miles prepares to play in his first preliminary final at the Hostplus Cup level, he can confidently say the risk has paid off.

He has owned the No.1 jersey for the Dolphins this year, playing the majority of the season at fullback, and achieved his goal of maintaining his spot in the side whenever the NRL-contracted Fuller did come back, whether that was on the wing or off the bench.

The 24-year-old has had a standout season and is thriving as Redcliffe push further into finals.

“I feel good,” Miles said.

“I’m pretty proud of what I’ve been able to do, like play a full year of Cup with no injuries – touch wood.

“I’ve been able to play the whole year without being dropped out of the squad. I’m pretty proud of that.

“It’s elevated my game to that next level, so hopefully it just keeps going up from here.”

Miles – who has family history at Redcliffe with his grandparents Robert and Beatrice Crossley both working at the club for 20 years – said one of the selling points to come to the Dolphins was their proud past.

“I’ve loved it here,” he said.

“All the boys and the staff are really good, very welcoming, and obviously Eric’s got a good strike rate with a lot of teams.

“The club’s got a very rich history… I’ve got a lot of family history with the club and I’m just pleased to be able to put on the jersey.”

Miles will pull on the jersey at least one more time this season, when the Dolphins take on the Burleigh Bears for a place in the 2025 Hostplus Cup grand final this Saturday at UAA Park on the Gold Coast.

While taking on the minor premiers in the Bears is sure to be a challenge, Miles is relishing the fact he is just one win away from a potential grand final berth.

For him, making the premiership decider would just confirm that the risk paid off in ways he could never imagine.

“It would be a dream come true,” Miles said of the possibility of making the grand final.

“That’s what you want to do every year, no matter what grade you’re playing in, whether it’s NRL, Cup, A-grade, that’s the main goal you want to get to and that’s what everyone strives for.

“I think we’ve got the team to do it and a great bunch of boys, so it would mean the world to me.”