{"id":202,"date":"2026-04-28T14:06:35","date_gmt":"2026-04-28T14:06:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/202\/"},"modified":"2026-04-28T14:06:35","modified_gmt":"2026-04-28T14:06:35","slug":"afl-trade-news-2026-dilemma-in-lachie-neale-free-agency-call-adelaide-crows-jesse-hogan-contract-standoff","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/202\/","title":{"rendered":"AFL trade news 2026: Dilemma in Lachie Neale free agency call, Adelaide Crows, Jesse Hogan contract standoff"},"content":{"rendered":"

Lachie Neale has publicly said<\/a> his free agency preference is to remain a Lion, but particular dynamics mean rival teams from down south could sway his ultimate call. <\/p>\n

Plus, the core issue behind a star forward\u2019s contract hold-up. Read on in Trade Whispers. <\/p>\n

Watch every match of every round of the AFL Premiership Season LIVE and ad-break free during play on FOX FOOTY, available on Kayo Sports | New to Kayo? Join now and get your first month for just $1.<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

COMPLEX NEALE DYNAMICS OPEN DOOR TO SA CLUBS<\/p>\n

The common thought regarding Neale\u2019s free agency is that the dual Brownlow medallist will choose between either Brisbane or Perth, given his children live in Western Australia with his former partner Jules. <\/p>\n

However, it might not be that simple, as Midweek Tackle\u2019s Jon Ralph explains, and it could see the South Australian clubs very much in the window to woo him. <\/p>\n

\u201cAugust is d-day, he\u2019ll assess all of the clubs who are interested in him \u2014 and you\u2019d say \u2018why would a club other than those two states (Queensland and WA) have a chance?\u2019\u201d Ralph began on Fox Footy. <\/p>\n

\u201cWell, the issue is that his parents ferry his young kids across the country when he does see them, and that\u2019s been quite regularly, but he hasn\u2019t really got a lot of family or help in Brisbane. <\/p>\n

\u201cI think there are clubs in Adelaide that would say \u2018okay, his parents live in Robe (in South Australia), so three or four hours south (of Adelaide), and if it was that we could offer him a deal that might satisfy him, he\u2019s closeby to Perth, where he\u2019s only got his immediate family, what about if, say, an Adelaide or Port said \u2018two years at $750,000\u2019?\u201d<\/p>\n

Midweek Tackle panellist Scott Gullan said: \u201cI\u2019d do it in a heartbeat. Adelaide\u2019s got issues around the ball, as we know. He\u2019s still an amazing athlete \u2026 ultimate professional, leadership \u2014 I\u2019d have two years, pay him what he wants, get him to Adelaide, it makes sense.\u201d<\/p>\n

Of Neale having to coordinate a back-and-forth between Brisbane and Perth to see his children, Gullan added: \u201cIt\u2019s not sustainable for another year.\u201d<\/p>\n

The 32-year-old is coming off a blistering 42-disposal display in last Sunday\u2019s win over Adelaide, and has shown thus far this season that he\u2019s still an elite midfielder in the competition. <\/p>\n

It comes after his miraculous injury recovery to play a starring role in Brisbane\u2019s second consecutive premiership last September.<\/p>\n

Will AFL move match for Pendles’ record? | 03:18<\/p>\n

$600K \u2018PROBLEM\u2019 IN HOGAN STANDOFF<\/p>\n

Giants spearhead Jesse Hogan reportedly doesn\u2019t want to leave GWS, but there\u2019s a clear sticking point in negotiations over a new contract. <\/p>\n

Hogan, 31, isn\u2019t even one year removed from his Coleman Medal triumph last season, but he\u2019s gone goalless on two occasions this year and has only once eclipsed two goals in a game. <\/p>\n

Midweek Tackle\u2019s Lauren Wood says Hogan \u201cwants to stay a Giant\u201d, but that there\u2019s work to be done between the two sides over remuneration. <\/p>\n

\u201cThere were whispers about some interest from some other clubs, and I think it would naturally come \u2026 but he was adamant that he has no intent to leave GWS,\u201d Wood told Fox Footy on Tuesday night. <\/p>\n

\u201cAnd (he) was actually quite emotive with how he spoke about it \u2014 \u2018GWS essentially saved my career when nobody else would, everyone had written me off\u2019. <\/p>\n

\u201cSo, he essentially feels like he\u2019s got to repay the faith \u2026 I think what it\u2019s going to come down to, and talking to people at the Giants, what do you pay him in this scenario? What is he worth at that age?\u201d<\/p>\n

Jon Ralph replied: \u201cOn form, he\u2019s a $600,000 player. <\/p>\n

\u201cBut the problem is players like Scott Pendlebury and Steele Sidebottom are probably playing for a couple hundred thousand \u2014 those players are playing for so little, and someone like Jessie \u2026 has never got that big payday. <\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s the challenge. But I think a bloke, who, if he can finish off the season in great style after that Coleman Medal, he\u2019s 600 (thousand dollars per season).\u201d<\/p>\n

On whether the hold-up was between money or years on a contract, Ralph said: \u201cHe wants more money.\u201d<\/p>\n

AFL Media reported earlier in April that the Giants had tabled Hogan a two-year offer, which would take him through to his age-33 season. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Lachie Neale has publicly said his free agency preference is to remain a Lion, but particular dynamics mean…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":203,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[395,404,416,417,23,133,402,99,408,401,412,414,409,406,368,413,407,400,399,403,260,262,405,120,335,212,410,397,415,121,396,411,418,68,353,398],"class_list":{"0":"post-202","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-adelaide","8":"tag-adelaide","9":"tag-adelaide-crows","10":"tag-agency-call","11":"tag-agency-preference","12":"tag-australia","13":"tag-australia-and-new-zealand","14":"tag-australian-clubs","15":"tag-brisbane","16":"tag-brisbane-lions","17":"tag-clear-sticking-point","18":"tag-core-issue","19":"tag-daniel-pockett","20":"tag-elite-midfielder","21":"tag-fox-footy","22":"tag-getty-images-inc","23":"tag-jesse-hogan","24":"tag-jon-ralph","25":"tag-jules","26":"tag-lachie-neale","27":"tag-lauren-wood","28":"tag-melbourne","29":"tag-melbourne-demons","30":"tag-miraculous-injury-recovery","31":"tag-oceania","32":"tag-perth","33":"tag-queensland","34":"tag-razor-ray-chamberlain","35":"tag-scott-gullan","36":"tag-scott-pendlebury","37":"tag-south-australia","38":"tag-steele-sidebottom","39":"tag-trade-news","40":"tag-trade-whispers","41":"tag-victoria","42":"tag-western-australia","43":"tag-young-kids"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/202","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=202"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/202\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/203"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=202"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=202"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=202"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}