Lachie Neale

[Bully]

Had a solid first half and looking like a 130+ score and then totally disappeared in the second half.

Lack of preseason starting to show, tough break for those who held. No doubts he'll come good but unfortunately he's lost a swag of cash in the process.

[Wanderer]

The cash is not a problem for those that are keeping him if he ends up being top 10 mid.
Those that dropped him will get him back again $120k cheaper, but will waste a trade doing it.
Those that never had him from the start are the real winners.

[Hazza09]

Time to cut my loses with Neale. Was completely MIA in the second half and I don’t even think there was a hard tag on him.
Others are trading / traded him to Macrae, Bont, Steele or any premo midfield option.

Yes it’s a trade they will use to get him back but at this point his scoring and influence during games is a real concern.

I think he has to go this week.

[tkringle]

Time to cut my loses with Neale. Was completely MIA in the second half and I don’t even think there was a hard tag on him.
Others are trading / traded him to Macrae, Bont, Steele or any premo midfield option.

Yes it’s a trade they will use to get him back but at this point his scoring and influence during games is a real concern.

I think he has to go this week.

Crazy to trade him now that he has lost 80K..

[Mat0369]

The cash is not a problem for those that are keeping him if he ends up being top 10 mid.
Those that dropped him will get him back again $120k cheaper, but will waste a trade doing it.
Those that never had him from the start are the real winners.

Most people allow themselves two corrective trades come round 3. It is normally reserved for rookies but in this case if you made the call with Neale it may be the right one. Going to Oliver/Macrae you pocket 65-70k making the trade. That allows you to make your next upgrade pretty quickly having that in the bank and you still have an elite premium player in your side.

Crazy to trade him now that he has lost 80K..

Not really. If he keeps performing the way he does he is going to lose a lot more. He has lost 80k and you can still trade him pretty easily to the premium of your choice. It sucks that you have lost that cash to begin with but it could get a whole lot worse if teams tag him. So far he has struggled with the attention when it is there. This could be a Rory Sloane scenario of a couple years back where teams figured out if they tag him they can completely take him out of the game. When he manages to avoid it he will go huge, but if he is getting tagged in 75% of games it could be bad news.

[enzedder]

Still think he will be a top 10 mid so holding till the bitter end now.
The fact he has had 3 sub 100s at his original starting price of 721k means overall is shot with others getting the leg up at the start with a better pick and the opportunity to pass on Neale totally or get him on the cheap if he appears worth it.
Been a disaster starting pick for me as he was last year when I didn’t start him.

[Ringo]

For those  that are keeping Neale from last nights presser on Neale.

It was a brave effort by Lachie tonight he could’ve easily sat it out and been in better nick for the dogs but he got himself up to play and did a really good job tonight.

[enzedder]

For those  that are keeping Neale from last nights presser on Neale.

It was a brave effort by Lachie tonight he could’ve easily sat it out and been in better nick for the dogs but he got himself up to play and did a really good job tonight.

Maybe he should have sat it out as it would have been easier to trade his ass. Looks like he is playing hurt and may be rested at some point. Too late now. Already lost shed loads of coin so I’m all in. Big loss or eventual turn around and save the trade. Hopefully the trade at the end of the year is sweet.

[Wanderer]

I'm not too concerned about Neale turning things around. He scored over 80 in the first half (with zero supply from his ruck in the stoppages) and his lack of conditioning stopped him from going 150+. Lions have other mids that are just as damaging that teams have to worry about, so the Geelong game was an anomaly. It has been his conditioning that has held him back from big scores, which should improve in the near future.

[Wanderer]

Still think he will be a top 10 mid so holding till the bitter end now.
The fact he has had 3 sub 100s at his original starting price of 721k means overall is shot with others getting the leg up at the start with a better pick and the opportunity to pass on Neale totally or get him on the cheap if he appears worth it.
Been a disaster starting pick for me as he was last year when I didn’t start him.

I'm enjoying not having to worry about overall and just playing for leagues. If Neale turns it around in the near future, that extra trade or two saved will be handy come SC league finals.

[Hazza09]

Overall was shot after Rd 1, but definitely shot after Rd 3.
Have noticed 50% of teams in my cash league have traded Neale to Macrae.

Neale is obviously playing injured but honestly how long / what kind of injury is this?
Would have preferred Neale to have been a late out. At this rate he is becoming a M8 possible M9 if I don’t trade him out soon.

[Wanderer]

Last night's game by Neale was very similar to Cripps game last week where he had a massive first half and then disappeared.

I was watching Neale closely and in the third qtr he was running into space towards the boundary line a few times to receive the ball coming out of the backline and his team mate with the ball totally ignored him. After a while Neale gave up sprinting into space, especially in the last qtr and was caught in no mans land with the ball going back and forth over his head. He was also staying out of the contests more than usual.

Is it conditioning or carrying a minor injury or both? Only time will tell.

I don't think there is any massive advantage or disadvantage to those who traded him out and those who kept him if Neale ends up being a top 10 mid. Those who started without him are the real winners though, especially if they got a premium keeper like Oliver or Macrae instead and were able to avoid a mid-price bust player and get another premo instead with the spare cash.

[shaker]

Looks like he playing sore his second half was poor without a serious tag 9 days off might help him.

[enzedder]

From the Age
Asked to elaborate on the issue, Neale was only prepared to say so much.

“It’s to do with my back. I had a scan and it wasn’t a great result. There’s a little bit in there but that’s something that I’ll deal with. I’m not sure if I’m allowed to really say too much, it wasn’t a great result on the scan,” Neale said.

Lions coach Chris Fagan said after the game that Neale’s performance under duress had been courageous.

Wish this was out prior to last night’s game. Would have traded for sure.
Backs are hard to get right.
Changes my don’t trade cause he’s bled 80k already and it’s too late stance to well maybe I do cut my losses now as I can see the potential for it needing management all season with games missed throwing his top10 status into questionable territory.

[Wanderer]

I can understand them hiding the problem with his back so he doesn't get targeted, but it really sucks not having known this earlier. It would make it so much easier to offload him if they just come out and say they will rest him for a few games, even if it means losing $80k.