7NEWS reporter Tom Morris has revealed that Lachie Neale was shown through Collingwood's headquarters at the AIA Centre last Friday — the day before Brisbane's loss to Carlton on Saturday night.
The Brisbane Lions superstar is an unrestricted free agent weighing up his future, and Collingwood are reportedly in the box seat to secure the two-time Brownlow medallist. Neale also met with St Kilda coach Ross Lyon in Melbourne last month, the day after the Lions played.
AFL greats slam the timing
On The Agenda Setters, Port Adelaide great Kane Cornes and St Kilda champion Nick Riewoldt both took aim at Neale's decision to tour Collingwood's facilities on the eve of a match.
“I have a big issue with it, and I need to say this, I’m a Lachie fan, I think he’s terrific, a superstar player, but I think now it’s become a little bit too much about Lachie,” Cornes said.
“You don’t need to tour a club’s facilities. A pool’s a pool, right? And these players use these outside facilities as well to recover. He knows Collingwood’s facilities are pretty good. I think this is rubbing Brisbane’s nose in it a little bit. And if I was Chris Fagan, if I was Danny Daly, if I was senior teammates of Lachie’s, I’d be pretty upset about this, that it’s become a bit too much about Lachie.”
Cornes also stressed Brisbane’s quest for a historic third consecutive premiership. “You are in rare air if you win three premierships in a row. My sole focus would be on how can I help this team go to immortal status and win three in a row to join ‘01, ‘02, ‘03 in that club. Not meeting with other clubs the day before a game.”
Teammates reportedly frustrated
Footy journalist Caroline Wilson went further, claiming some Brisbane players are “a little bit over” Neale and that the relationship is no longer what it was.
“I can tell you that there are people at Brisbane who weren’t thrilled about it,” Wilson said. “I can also tell you that there are players at Brisbane who just, you know, are probably a little bit over Lachie Neale. They love him as a teammate, but there is no doubt there is not the relationship that there was. And I don’t think they were thrilled to learn on the team bus about the meeting with Ross Lyon a few weeks ago. And they probably won’t be thrilled to hear about this. I know that others at the club weren’t thrilled about it, whatever they say publicly.”
Wilson described Neale’s actions as selfish. “Don’t you think it’s a bit, look at me, look at me? I mean, as Kane said, you don’t need to see the Collingwood facilities. It’s probably really nice to be wooed by Craig McRae and Craig Kelly ... it’s selfish. Sorry, but it is. It’s a selfish thing.”
Riewoldt warns of rifts
Morris argued that out-of-contract players have every right to secure their future in the modern game, but Riewoldt countered that the perception of being distracted can damage team chemistry.
“You have to understand that when you are on a course, as Kane has just articulated so well, these things drive cracks into the group,” Riewoldt said. “You know how small the degrees are between winning and losing when it comes to the pointy end of the season. And so any, any, even if it’s only a perceived, you’re not quite all in. You’ve got one eye on the future. It festers within a football club.”
When Morris said it shouldn’t matter what Neale does as long as he performs on the field, Riewoldt responded: “It matters because the teammates don’t like it.”
