The Brisbane Lions premiership defence is just around the corner and star player Lachie Neale has released a rare image behind the scenes, with a heartbreaking twist.
Neale posted an image hard at work in the weights room ahead of the club’s first match of the AFL season against the Western Bulldogs on Saturday, March 7.
And astute viewers will notice that he is not wearing his wedding ring, following the collapse of his marriage during the AFL off-season.
Rumours first surfaced in December that Lachie Neale and his wife Jules were in serious trouble after Jules revealed she had been ‘betrayed in the most unimaginable way,’ fuelling speculation about an alleged affair involving one of her close friends.
She quickly removed Lachie from her social media, unfollowed both him and the woman linked to the scandal, and made it clear the pair were not attempting to quietly reconcile behind the scenes.
Jules has since moved back to Perth with their two children, Piper and Freddie, while their Brisbane home is set for auction.
Neale posted this image in the gym, tagging the Brisbane Lions, as he prepares for the upcoming AFL season
Neale separated from his wife Jules in the off-season with his estranged wife moving back to Perth
In early January, Lachie confirmed the couple had separated, publicly apologised for letting his family down and subsequently stepped down from his co-captaincy at the Brisbane Lions as he dealt with the fallout.
Jules later relocated to Perth with their two young children, focusing on family life and sharing messages about resilience and new beginnings.
Raised in South Australia, Neale relocated to Perth after being drafted by Fremantle, where he spent seven seasons and met Jules.
However Lachie says he remains fully committed to the Brisbane Lions for the 2026 season despite speculation about a potential return to Western Australia.
‘I haven’t really considered that yet,’ Neale said in January when asked if he might consider a move to Western Australia in 2027.
‘My decision was always going to be put on hold with my contracts regardless, so we’ll work that out in the next six months.
‘We’ve got a bit of time.
‘I’m going to be here (in Brisbane) this season coming up.
Neale travelled to Perth to spend time with his children Piper and Freddie recently
The Brisbane Lions are back-to-back AFL champions and will be looking to defend the premiership again starting March 7 against the Western Bulldogs
‘Fully committed to putting everything I can into footy, getting into training.’
Neale recently took time to travel to Perth to see his children, including daughter Piper who started her first day of school.
Jules released a series of photos on Instagram captioned ‘that’s some lemonade’ detailing her healing journey.
In a telling gesture, she included footage of Lachie spending time with their children, suggesting a focus on co-parenting despite the split.
Meanwhile Brisbane coach Chris Fagan has said Neale is enjoying his best pre-season in years despite dealing with significant personal issues.
‘To Lachie’s credit, in terms of the way that he’s training and going about things, he’s having his best pre-season in a long while,’ Fagan said.
‘Normally, he’s finished seasons quite injured and been in rehab, but this year he had no injury at the finish.
‘He’s been able to train fully and in the best shape he’s been in for ages in terms of setting himself up for a good football season.
‘He’s in a good place at the moment, obviously got a bit going on personally, but he seems to be coping with that pretty well.’
