It’s official: Lachie Neale has told Brisbane he intends to sign a three-year deal with Collingwood.
Neale on Tuesday informed the Lions that he will leave as an unrestricted free agent, a move which has been locked in for at least a month.
Aware that he was departing and accepting of the financial realities, Brisbane never offered Neale a contract.
It’s expected to be announced as early as Wednesday, with the paperwork to be formalised as early as Friday when the free agency period opens.
Neale won three premierships for the Lions — two of them as co-captain — and is a dual Brownlow medallist.
All up, he played 186 games for Brisbane and leaves as one of the club’s most decorated midfielders, boasting four best-and-fairest awards and four All-Australian blazers.
West Coast offered a deal in late August but it was nowhere near what Collingwood was able to present: A contract worth around $3 million across three seasons.
Neale spoke to Adelaide himself earlier in the season to gauge interest, while he also met with Ross Lyon from St Kilda multiple times as the Saints flirted with the possibility of making a play for him.
A return to Fremantle was also a fleeting option, but Collingwood was always the frontrunner once they tabled a lucrative deal and sold the dream of Neale playing deep into his 30s like Scott Pendlebury.
Neale toured Magpies HQ the day before a game earlier in the year, and was able to compartmentalise performing for Brisbane and accepting it would be his last year.
The club supported him throughout his personal issues, which were laid bare in the pre-season and led to him giving up the captaincy.
Brisbane also stood by him in grand final week, successfully appealing an MRO and tribunal ruling which would have seen him miss Saturday’s decider.
It’s understood Neale was keen to continue playing in the midfield, but was aware that the evolution of Brisbane’s young ball-winners meant he was likely to be nudged out of the engine room in 2027.
