AFL chief executive Andrew Dillon said the league's power figures are comfortable with Brisbane star Lachie Neale being free to play in Saturday's Grand Final against Fremantle after his one-match suspension was lifted on Thursday.
Neale copped a ban for his strike on Hawthorn's Jack Ginnivan, and after a five-hour marathon Tribunal hearing on Tuesday, he was still unavailable for the decider.
The Lions took the matter to the AFL Appeals Board, and after another two hours, he was fined $10,000 instead of suspended, as many pundits expected.
“We're comfortable with the way the process played out. Lachie got the chance to argue his case twice, and we'll accept the findings from the appeals board,” Dillon said on Channel Seven Friday morning.
The AFL Appeals Board cleared Neale due to exceptional and compelling circumstances, which relied heavily on his unblemished suspension record throughout his 320-game career.
But Dillon said that, given how the Appeals Board reached its verdict, he admitted the Tribunal could've cleared him earlier in the week.
"Potentially, yeah," Dillon said.
“But what happens is Lachie got the chance to argue again in the alternative.
“A different panel made a different finding; it was open to him under the rules. We'll accept that.
“The other part is he was still found guilty of the offence, but they just found that it was a fine rather than the suspension.”
Neale was pleased with the outcome, as he pushes for a third consecutive premiership with the Lions.
"Obviously, very happy with the Appeals Board's decision," Neale said.
"Looking forward to playing the Grand Final now, and I want to thank the club, Danny (Daly), everyone involved in the process and helping me play this weekend and the AFL Appeals Board for their decision as well.
"I wouldn't say (I have) a bigger point to prove; I just want to play my part on Saturday. Difficult challenge against Freo, but hopefully we do it."
Fremantle coach Justin Longmuir wasn't surprised by the outcome, but said the club's planning hadn't changed.
"I thought he would play; it has probably taken longer than expected," Longmuir told Fox Footy shortly after the outcome was revealed.
