On a brilliant day in Melbourne in mid-March, Lachie Neale paused for a moment as he considered what his elevation to the co-captaincy of Brisbane would mean for his football.
History in all walks of life is littered with leaders who have flourished or frozen with the responsibility. And the footy oval is no different in what is a particularly chaotic environment.
Neale is an outstanding footballer and clearly among the best in the land.
But was there a risk that being asked to be the Lion King might dilute his exceptionalism on the field?
He answered the query with the calm confidence and conviction with which he has led the Lions throughout a season culminating in their clash with Collingwood in Saturday’s grand final.
“I feel like it can really enhance my performance. And I feel like I’ve played better footy when the pressure is on in the high-stakes games. I feed off that. I love those moments,” he said.
Just over six months later, Neale is a dual-Brownlow medallist after edging brilliant Bulldog Marcus Bontempelli and unlucky Magpie Nick Daicos in a thrilling count in Melbourne.
As always in an award that is clearly subjective despite best intentions, for it is beyond dispute that it is a midfielders’ medal, the count conjured its usual quirks and controversy.
The Bont was robbed! What about the poor Pie Nick? And “Whoa, Errol”!
That’s Errol Gulden, the exciting young Swan who charged to the finishing line like a sprinter racing past a stayer when tying with Port Adelaide’s Zak Butters in fourth.
Pistols were drawn. Shots were fired. And it was not just a partisan gunfight as pundits and statistician puzzled over the ins and outs of what the umpires were thinking and why.
That, of course, is a national pastime. The next instalment begins with the opening bounce on Saturday as the Neale-led Lions tackle Daicos and his Magpie mates for the premiership.
Two main points of objection were raised.
The Lion received best on-field honours against the Giants in round 6 in Canberra in a match where Chris Fagan and Adam Kinglsey ignored him in an award judged by the coaches.
Another example of the Canberra bubble being out of touch with common folk? Perhaps.
But it is not an isolated example and before the coaches are elevated as arbiters above all others when it comes to polling, the same scenario happened in 16 other games in 2023.
The 30-year-old was also overlooked for All Australian honours. But nor is this a first, with Matt Priddis and Sam Mitchell among other Brownlow Medallist to miss out in recent years.
Neale was admittedly perplexed initially, saying he was “pretty rattled to be honest” at his elevation to sit alongside some of the greatest footballers as a dual-Brownlow medallist.
But he did allow it would sink in. Few with the time to offer a sober appraisal of his consistent excellence would argue Neale is not deserving of the company he now keeps.
During outgoing AFL chief executive Gillon McLachlan’s near-decade long tenure, only Geelong champion Patrick Dangerfield has compiled more votes than the 186 of Neale.
Patrick Cripps pipped Neale last year. In 2019 he finished fourth. And Neale bolted home in 2020. He is the first player to poll 25 Brownlow votes or more in four seasons.
Neale did not always stand out above others on a footy field. The kid from Kybybolite, a tiny town in the south-east of South Australia, had an unlucky habit of missing out in his youth.
He was passed over for selection in a junior grand final and later missed an invitation to a key pre-draft camp. Port Adelaide and the Crows overlooked him in their backyard.
This allowed Fremantle to strike gold with lowly pick 58 in 2011 before he moved to the Lions in 2018.
Brisbane chairman Andrew Wellington, when assessing Neale distinguished career earlier this year, believes the midfielder realised that he needed to work harder than others to excel.
“No-one comes into the system with a silver bullet, that sort of thing, but when a player is drafted around that level, they would know there is probably a fair bit of work to do,” he said.
The work is not complete for the Pride of the Lions who, unlike many of his teammates, does have grand final experience, having represented Fremantle in 2013 while a fledgling Docker.
Matthew Pavlich was the South Australian carrying the responsibility of captaincy into a grand final on the occasion as the captain of the Dockers.
A decade on and that honour rests with Neale, who cited Pavlich as a leader whose style he hoped to borrow from, and co-captain Harris Andrews.
Neale prides himself on excelling in big matches. He will face no greater challenge in football than Saturday’s encounter at the MCG as Brisbane seeks their first premiership in 20 years.
