Fremantle GM of Football Peter Bell has revealed the conversations that took place at the club during the Lachie Neale saga, before the Lion confirmed he would stay in the Sunshine State.
The news broke on Sunday night that Neale had an interest in leaving Brisbane despite two years to run on his contract to be nearer to family ahead of the birth of his first child.
Neale met with Lions’ representatives on Monday - including coach Chris Fagan - and stressed he wanted time to make his decision, before going public on Thursday morning with his desire to stay in Brisbane.
The Lions were reportedly shocked by the news their Brownlow medallist potentially wanted out, however, the report wasn't a huge surprise to Bell and the Dockers.
“Quite late in the piece we became aware that potentially, I want to stress that word, potentially Lachie and (wife) Jules were considering what life might be like raising their family in Brisbane and raising their family in Western Australia,” Bell told SEN WA’s Sporting Goss.
However, he says Fremantle can’t prioritise players they aren’t certain about and get busy with situations that may not unfold.
“Until such time that (if) Lachie had of come out and said I want a trade to Fremantle, you don’t spend a huge amount of time discussing things internally, as it’s proven in this case he’s decided to stay where he’s contracted,” Bell said.
“There are so many other things to be focusing on… things move really, really quickly in the AFL.”
Despite ruling Neale out of their short-term plans, the former Fremantle captain hinted the club could welcome the superstar back after his contract at Brisbane expires.
“Given Lachie and Jules’ history in Western Australia and post his football career he’s always indicated that Western Australia would be where he wants to have the next stage of his life, we’ll always monitor the situation,” he said.
“If there are opportunities to look at things (when he finishes at Brisbane) then we’ll do so, but in the meantime, we’ve got a lot of work to do to improve our list and continuing to improve our football and program.”
Fremantle is currently managing a deal for talented youngster Adam Cerra, who requested a trade to a Melbourne-based club last month.