{"id":63945,"date":"2026-08-03T06:25:28","date_gmt":"2026-08-03T06:25:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/63945\/"},"modified":"2026-08-03T06:25:28","modified_gmt":"2026-08-03T06:25:28","slug":"lachie-neale-spotted-at-collingwood-facility-in-major-hint-about-next-move","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/63945\/","title":{"rendered":"Lachie Neale spotted at Collingwood facility in major hint about next move"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Lions star Lachie Neale was reportedly shown around Collingwood\u2019s state-of-the-art training facility last week in a major hint that his future lies away from Brisbane. <\/p>\n<p><a class=\"body-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.sen.com.au\/news\/2026\/08\/02\/afl-2026-lachie-neale-free-agent-tours-collingwood-facilities-brisbane-tom-morris\" title=\"www.sen.com.au\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">According to veteran AFL reporter Tom Morris<\/a>, the 33-year-old toured the AIA Centre on Friday, while he was already in Melbourne for the Lions match against Carlton on Saturday night.<\/p>\n<p>Neale is an unrestricted free agent and is yet to publicly announce where he\u2019ll be playing in 2026, with several Victorian, South Australian and Western Australian clubs all understood to be interested in his signature.<\/p>\n<p>But in recent weeks Collingwood have emerged as frontrunners for the dual Brownlow medallist, with the Pies reportedly tabling Neale a three-year, $3million contract.<\/p>\n<p>Collingwood is on the hunt to add an elite midfielder to their squad and has also put themselves in the running to secure the services of Zak Butters. However, that is seen as a long shot. <\/p>\n<p>Neale has family in WA, SA and Victoria and that is understood to be driving him away from the Lions amid a difficult time in his personal life.<\/p>\n<p>In telling comments that his future likely lies away from Brisbane, Neale told Triple M earlier this year that he is weighing up the \u201cpros and cons\u201d, but ultimately family comes first.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFor me, it comes down to family,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cObviously my kids, love them to bits \u2026 Piper and Freddie.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey\u2019ll be top priority.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>It was originally thought that Neale would head back to Western Australia and play with a club from WA to be closer to his children.<\/p>\n<p>His marriage with Jules Neale broke down in December last year, and she is now living in Perth with their two young children, Piper and Freddie.<\/p>\n<p>However, Victoria now appears to be the most likely landing spot for Neale, given the clubs are better equipped to offer him a lucrative deal and are in a position to challenge for a flag.<\/p>\n<p>The two-time premiership winner also had a meeting with St Kilda coach Ross Lyon last month.<\/p>\n<p>Lyon coached Neale at the beginning of his career at the Dockers, and the Saints are also in the running for Neale\u2019s signature.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere\u2019s due diligence, to try to get better, and that\u2019s all it is here,\u201d Lyon said about his dinner with Neale.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s the normal dinner, with both people window shopping. There\u2019s certainly no strong agenda from either side.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBut if Collingwood and Essendon and everyone are talking to Lachie, I think I can slip in between entr\u00e9e and main: \u2018What are you thinking about doing with your life in footy?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Neale moves on with new flame<\/p>\n<p>The news comes after Neale seemingly moved on from his marriage breakdown with Jules as he was spotted with a new flame on the weekend.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s believed brunette Emma Field is the new woman in Neale\u2019s life, with the pair seen together at Brisbane Airport after flying back from Melbourne.<\/p>\n<p>They were spotted grinning as they walked side-by-side, with Neale understood to have waited for Field to join him in the terminal after he disembarked from the plane with his teammates.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s understood Field was also in Perth the week prior when the Lions travelled to play against West Coast.<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"body-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.news.com.au\/lifestyle\/relationships\/dating\/afl-star-lachie-neales-rumoured-new-romance-after-marriage-breakdown-as-exwife-jules-also-moves-on\/news-story\/69c1ab2781411fa05da080f61321517c\" title=\"www.news.com.au\" data-tgev=\"event119\" data-tgev-container=\"bodylink\" data-tgev-order=\"69c1ab2781411fa05da080f61321517c\" data-tgev-label=\"lifestyle\" data-tgev-metric=\"ev\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Sources suggest <\/a>Field, who works in advertising, even recently floated the idea of transferring to Melbourne for work.<\/p>\n<p>The move would conveniently align with whispers that Neale is ready to make the move to Victoria next season.<\/p>\n<p>Kane Cornes torches Lachie Neale<\/p>\n<p>Footy pundit Kane Cornes says Neale would have angered teammates by touring a rival club one day before the team\u2019s shock loss to Carlton.<\/p>\n<p>Cornes said on his SEN Breakfast show: \u201cI can\u2019t stand it. I can\u2019t stand it.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou\u2019ve got a chance to be in absolute rare air and win three premierships in a row. You\u2019re fighting for a top four position to do that \u2014 and the day before a game you\u2019re at another club\u2019s facility.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI cannot stand it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He said the idea of Neale touring a rival club\u2019s facilities one day after a game would have been \u201cslightly better\u201d. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe can do whatever he wants, but is that the best thing for him and his team to play well,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cBut why don\u2019t you just wait until the end of the year? There\u2019s plenty of time.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He went on to say even coach Chris Fagan would be privately \u201cfurious\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere\u2019s a way you can do it which is respectful,\u201d Cornes said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou can take a phone call. There\u2019s a difference between taking a phone call and touring a rival club\u2019s facility the day before a game, and then that becomes public.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m not sure if that is in the best interests of his footy club. I bet you if you ask Chris Fagan and those at Brisbane \u2014 whilst publicly they will say they don\u2019t haven issue with it \u2014 I reckon they\u2019d be furious.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf you deep down ask Chris Fagan what he really thought of his star player at another team\u2019s facilities the day before a game \u2014 I bet you Chris Fagan, if he was honest, would be not that happy.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Read related topics:<a class=\"topic_tag\" href=\"https:\/\/www.news.com.au\/topics\/brisbane\" data-tgev-container=\"story-topic-links\" data-tgev-label=\"Brisbane\" data-tgev-order=\"1\" data-tgev-metric=\"npv\" data-tgev=\"event10\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Brisbane<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Lions star Lachie Neale was reportedly shown around Collingwood\u2019s state-of-the-art training facility last week in a major hint&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":63946,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[76755,76796,51159,76769,54713,76756,76784,6257,40379,39234,36679,49060,76770,76801,38123,76760,76785,76750,37642,76762,40443,40997,68365,57127,76776,76783,76751,39719,76780,612,76772,76794,76774,76793,76754,76090,76809,99,1207,76787,6524,76798,1074,12381,76799,41559,43269,43089,45097,37840,76819,76820,76771,34418,3052,76808,47622,9715,76800,76805,45553,76789,76803,76802,40206,76746,76753,76806,76757,76810,76791,43203,76795,60839,400,76764,12760,399,76790,76782,37392,38447,76767,76778,76763,260,76768,42290,24811,76816,66556,76797,76761,40807,335,76765,76773,39012,56711,76817,76775,76749,76758,36048,76813,39961,3124,76807,48747,76779,36964,38001,39565,39745,36756,41980,76759,38263,42764,40959,9246,76818,76786,40599,76788,76752,37068,76748,59741,62572,76804,36757,38140,61642,44918,76781,38650,76792,37315,76777,36894,76815,2925,76766,68,3735,76814,353,76811,76812,76747,40459,515],"class_list":["post-63945","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-brisbane","tag-s-facilities","tag-s-facility","tag-s-life","tag-s-shock-loss","tag-s-signature","tag-s-state-of-the-art-training-facility","tag-3million-contract-collingwood","tag-6257","tag-a-chance","tag-a-club","tag-a-detail","tag-a-difference","tag-a-difficult-time","tag-a-flag-the-two-time-premiership-winner","tag-a-game","tag-a-long-shot","tag-a-lucrative-deal","tag-a-major-hint","tag-a-meeting","tag-a-new-flame","tag-a-phone-call","tag-a-position","tag-a-rival-club","tag-a-row","tag-a-telling-move","tag-a-three-year","tag-a-top-four-position","tag-a-way","tag-absolute-rare-air","tag-advertising","tag-afl-rivals","tag-an-elite-midfielder","tag-an-unrestricted-free-agent","tag-another-club","tag-another-team","tag-bits","tag-both-people-window-shopping","tag-brisbane","tag-brisbane-airport","tag-brunette-emma-field","tag-carlton","tag-carlton-cornes","tag-chris-fagan","tag-collingwood","tag-collingwood-and-essendon","tag-comments","tag-cornes","tag-december","tag-due-diligence","tag-earlier-this-year","tag-either-side","tag-entree-and-main","tag-even-coach-chris-fagan","tag-facility","tag-family","tag-field","tag-footy","tag-friday","tag-frontrunners","tag-gf-detail","tag-his-career","tag-his-children-his-marriage","tag-his-dinner","tag-his-footy-club","tag-his-future","tag-his-marriage-breakdown","tag-his-new-flame","tag-his-personal-life-in","tag-his-sen-breakfast-show","tag-his-signature-but","tag-his-star-player","tag-his-team","tag-his-teammates-it","tag-issue","tag-jules","tag-jules-neale","tag-lachie","tag-lachie-neale","tag-lachie-nealefooty-pundit-kane-cornes","tag-last-month-lyon","tag-last-week","tag-last-year","tag-lions-star-lachie-neale","tag-lyon","tag-major-hint","tag-melbourne","tag-melbourne-they","tag-my-kids","tag-neale","tag-new-flamethe-news","tag-next-move","tag-next-season-kane-cornes","tag-no-strong-agenda","tag-one-day","tag-perth","tag-piper-and","tag-piper-and-freddie","tag-plenty","tag-recent-weeks","tag-rival","tag-sa-and-victoria","tag-saturday-night-neale","tag-several-victorian","tag-south-australian","tag-st-kilda-coach-ross-lyon","tag-teammates","tag-that","tag-the-pros-and-cons","tag-the-33-year-old","tag-the-aia-centre","tag-the-beginning","tag-the-best-interests","tag-the-best-thing","tag-the-clubs","tag-the-day","tag-the-dockers","tag-the-dual-brownlow-medallist","tag-the-end","tag-the-hunt","tag-the-idea","tag-the-lions","tag-the-lions-match","tag-the-most-likely-landing-spot","tag-the-move","tag-the-new-woman","tag-the-normal-dinner","tag-the-pair","tag-the-pies","tag-the-plane","tag-the-running","tag-the-saints","tag-the-services","tag-the-team","tag-the-terminal","tag-the-week","tag-the-weekend-it","tag-the-year","tag-their-squad","tag-their-two-young-children","tag-three-premierships","tag-time","tag-top-priority","tag-triple-m","tag-veteran-afl-reporter-tom-morris","tag-victoria","tag-wa","tag-west-coast-sources","tag-western-australia","tag-western-australian-clubs","tag-whispers","tag-work-the-move","tag-your-life","tag-zak-butters"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63945","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=63945"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63945\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-j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