Brisbane superstar Lachie Neale doesn't know where his future lies, although he admits at his age, it's "nice to feel a little bit wanted".
Neale is genuinely weighing up a move away from the Lions, with reasons to head to Western Australia, South Australia and Victoria all ringing through his head.
He could return west to be closer to his children, or consider a move to SA where his mum and stepdad live, or even the Melbourne bubble, as Collingwood, Essendon and St Kilda linger around the unrestricted free agent.
"It's nice to be 33 and feel a little bit wanted. I love my football. I love playing for this footy club. What will be will work itself out over the next six to eight weeks in the back half of the year. I'll leave [manager] Tommy Petroro to deal with most of that," Neale said on Fox Footy following the win over Geelong.
"I've caught up with Dom [Ambrosio, Lions list manager] and Danny [Daly, Lions footy boss] as well so it's not just other clubs. It's a bit of a different situation that I'm working through and we'll work out the best result in due time. But I love playing for this club. I'm all in at the moment, trying to win a third premiership and who knows, I might be back next year as well."
But Neale did offer there's still a chance he remains in Queensland and Brisbane.
He joined the Lions in 2019, claiming two premierships, two Brownlow Medals, four All-Australian blazers and four best and fairest accolades.
"Weighing up whether to be closer to them (my parents), closer to the kids... success, finance..."
A brilliantly honest Lachie Neale explains why he's meeting with other clubs & how he'll decide on his AFL future. #AFLCatsLions pic.twitter.com/Lo4Qc4kwhH
— Fox Footy (@FOXFOOTY) July 2, 2026
"And Mum and my stepdad are on a farm right on the border of South Australia and Victoria. So it's sort of weighing up whether I be closer to them, closer to the kids, whether I stay in Brisbane and make that work as well. It's definitely a chance," he said.
"Like I said, I love playing here so I've just got weigh up success, finance and everything that goes along with playing footy. I'm 33 so probably don't have that long left.
"I honestly don't know what I'm going to do. That's 100 per cent the truth. I'm not sure what I'll decide. I'm loving playing for this club and hopefully we can make a run at [the premiership] this year."
Neale is in the process of meeting the three Victorian clubs, and although Brisbane coach Chris Fagan doesn't necessarily like it, he understands the modern football landscape.
"I'm OK with it. Lachie Neale is a free agent, and he's had a fair few things going on in his life, and he has to be able to deal with that, going forward. It's not just from a domestic perspective, but financially as well, he has to explore his options," Fagan said.
"Old-fashioned me, I wouldn't like it, but I've come to accept that's the modern game. The thing about it is, the only thing I really care about is that he's OK himself, and that he plays well for the team, and he's doing that.
"What he does in terms of his career going forward – the ball's in his court, he knows that we want him to stay and be a player at our footy club, but he's free to explore his options, and I'm cool with that."
However, Fagan insists the discussion around Neale's future isn't having an effect on the playing group.
"I don't think so, because I think as an industry, we're becoming accustomed to it. Probably 10 years ago, it wouldn't be too good, it'd be frowned upon, but I think times are changing in that space, and that's probably a good thing," Fagan said.
