TOUK Miller woke up, looked at his phone and couldn't believe his eyes.

Stunning scenes from South Africa showed his surfing buddy Mick Fanning fighting off an attack from a massive shark.

"It's a bit scary. I couldn't believe it," the Gold Coast midfielder told AFL.com.au on Monday.

Miller met Fanning, a huge Suns fan, when the club organised a surfing trip for them at Snapper Rocks in May.

Fortunately, Fanning wasn't harmed during the frightening incident.

He was on his surfboard during the final of the JBay Open when the huge shark closed in on live television.

Fanning told how he "punched (the shark) in the back" to escape and the shocked surfer said he would be happy never to compete again after getting away unscathed.

Miller quickly fired off a text to the three-time world champion on Monday morning, letting Fanning know he was in his thoughts.

"I was just like 'I hope you're all right and you recover well, and thank god you survived'," Miller said.

"I felt for him. I didn't get a response, but I wasn't expecting one either because he would've had a thousand text messages.

"The fact that he got away from a shark attack is something to tell for the rest of his life. 

"I would be surprised if he surfed again … I wouldn't if I was him."

Miller said he 'loved' his surfing trip with Fanning earlier this year.

"It was a bit weird. He'd catch a wave, come back and talk to me about it and then we'd move on. I loved it," said Miller, who used to surf with his schoolmates near Torquay in Victoria before he was drafted last year.

Having recovered from the shock of seeing Fanning's close run-in with a shark, there was another surprise in store for the impressive first-year footballer on Monday morning.

After arriving at the football club, the 19-year-old was told he had been nominated as the NAB AFL Rising Star for round 16.

"It's been a bit of a rollercoaster Monday," Miller said.