Fremantle CEO Simon Garlick has spoken on the recent reports linking Lions superstar Lachie Neale to a potential return back to the Dockers.
Neale met with Brisbane club officials on Monday and confirmed reports that he and his pregnant wife Julie were considering a move to Western Australia to raise their family.
The 28-year old didn't formally request a trade, although reports have suggested that Neale has spoken with Dockers players and coach Justin Longmuir.
RELATED: Neale to consider future, club confirms no trade request
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With a Brownlow Medal, two All-Australians and four best and fairests, it is clear that Brisbane would want significant compensation should Neale request a trade and depart the club.
Garlick commented on Neale's trade situation, saying a hypothetical trade request would be an exciting outcome for the club as they look to make a return to the top eight next season.
"Regardless of who the player is, whether it’s potentially someone coming in or by the same token with a player departing, we’ve got to make decisions that are really objective in relation to the long-term," Garlick said on Sportsday WA.
"We’ve clearly – and I think I’ve been on the record strongly – been hard at the draft in the last few years in particular and think we’ve got a core of young talent. We want to make sure we set ourselves for a long tilt at being competitive, rather than something that might get us there for a few years but then drop off again.
“So like any club, we’ve got areas that we’ve got strong coverage … but having depth in midfield has been shown to be a bit of a premiership trait for clubs in the past, so it’s certainly something that we’d consider closely.”
Lions skipper Dayne Zorko expressed his disappointment in the news of Neale's potential departure, but backed in his side's depth to continue their own premiership push next year.
"It would be extremely disappointing," Zorko told 7 News earlier this week.
"But I think we've seen at times this year the resilience in our group; when someone's gone out of the team we've been able to fill that void.
"We've got a great young crop of players coming through, that Lachie's certainly helped develop, which is really important for us and we've called on them plenty of times."
Neale was drafted to the Dockers in 2011 with pick 58 and played 135 games with them, before requesting a trade to Brisbane at the conclusion of the 2018 season.
The star midfielder has played 60 games for the Lions, in his three seasons in Queensland and remains to have two years left on his current deal.
