The race for Brisbane superstar Lachie Neale's signature is on.
While clubs such as Adelaide and Fremantle are circling, it seems more likely that Neale could be heading to Victoria to continue his Hall of Fame-worthy career in 2027.
Collingwood, Essendon and St Kilda are the main clubs currently vying for Neale, as the two-time premiership player and two-time Brownlow Medallist spends the second half of the season making up his mind on where he wants to play next.
Speaking on 3AW's broadcast on Friday, former Essendon skipper and legend Matthew Lloyd shared his opinion on where he thinks the 33-year-old will play out the final years of his career.
"Richmond and Essendon are a long way off, so I don't think, if I were Lachie Neale, I'd wanna go there," Lloyd said.
"Collingwood or St Kilda will be the two.
"I think for Lachie Neale, what does he want to get out of it? He'll be hoping he can leave with three premierships at the end of this year) And then you have got your premierships.
"Lachie Neale, I could imagine, might want to play on the MCG in front of 80,000 people every week rather than at Marvel.
"They are some of the things that I would be thinking of. I think Collingwood would be the most attractive for him. Particularly if they can get a big forward to the club as well, keep Pendlebury and maybe a few others to keep them challenging.
"St Kilda might sell to him, 'Well, we're the best club that's a chance of bouncing if we get a full squad and another year under (Tom) De Koning and we can recruit well', but is that appealing to him? That's where Collingwood maybe have the whip hand."
One thing working in the Saints' favour is senior coach Ross Lyon's relationship with Neale. Lyon coached Neale during the early years of his career at Fremantle and helped turn the star midfielder into the player he is today.
