Collins was delisted by Fremantle at the conclusion of the 2017 season,[6] in the same year in which he won the Dudley Tuckey Medal for Peel Thunder's Best and Fairest player[7] and was named in the WAFL team of the year.[8] He was not drafted by another AFL club in the 2017 AFL draft,[9] and returned to Melbourne to play for Werribee Football Club.[10] He won the Werribee Football Club Best and Fairest in 2018, was named in the VFL team of the year and came equal third in the JJ Liston Medal for the competitions best player.
The Gold Coast signed Collins as a mature aged state-league concession prior to the 2018 AFL draft, and will play for the club from 2019 onwards.[11]
In 2020, Collins was named in the Suns leadership group[12] and went on to win the Club Champion Award.[13]
Statistics
Statistics are correct to the end of round 3, 2022[14]
^The 2020 season was played with 17 home-and-away matches per team (down from 22) and 16-minute quarters with time on (down from 20-minute quarters with time on) due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Family life
Sam's father, Kevin Collins, has an extensive background in playing and coaching football. He played for many years at Oakleigh in the VFA and then coached at a number of clubs. He led Donvale FC to numerous premierships and had coaching stints at Box Hill FC coaching Sam to a Premiership. Kevin Collins continues to be involved in coaching and returned to Donvale FC to become the senior coach in 2020.[15]