Brisbane dual premiership coach Chris Fagan says he'd understand if embattled Lachie Neale departed the club at the end of 2026 amid personal troubles.
Neale stood down from co-captaincy of the Lions after he confirmed his marriage split from his wife, Jules, last week in a press conference.
Jules has returned to her home in Perth, where the couple met during Neale's time with Fremantle, with their two children.
The two-time Brownlow medallist didn't comment on his future beyond 2026, when he comes out of contract, and Fagan was unsure where his midfielder's mind sat.
"I don't know the answer to that either," Fagan said on Thursday, according to the Herald Sun.
"I hope he does (remain at Brisbane), but he is an unrestricted free agent … so he can make a call on what he needs to do, and he probably needs the next six or seven months to see what the next right step is.
"As I say, I hope he stays and plays with us, but if he chooses to move back to Perth because he needs to be closer to his children, then he will do that with our blessing.
"We are not going to hold anyone to ransom; we will just go along with the flow on that."
Fagan refused to delve into the private situation between Neale and his family, but offered his public support.
"Him and his family are going through a really difficult time at the moment,” Fagan said.
"We are OK with him making that decision.
"Obviously sad for Jules, sad for Lachie, sad for the children and sad it has become such a public thing.
"Our job is to just wrap our arms around him and his family and help them where we can. Outside of that, it is a private issue. That is where we stand with it."
The Lions coach commended the on-baller after he "owned" his mistake, and acknowledged there is plenty to work through regarding the leadership outlook.
Hugh McCluggage and Josh Dunkley immediately spring to mind as those who could step into the role alongside Harris Andrews, or the club could return to sole captaincy.
"We haven't really worked out the answer to that question. (Andrews as sole captain) is a possibility, no doubt. He is more than capable of doing it on his own," Fagan said.
"We will do our leadership group process during February and announce what that structure will look like late that month.
"One of the things we have done well over the last seven or eight years, since I've been at the club, is we have built leadership density – we went from having not many leaders to having a lot of leaders.
"The other two blokes you think could be in line if you went for two captains is Hugh McCluggage and Josh Dunkley. They are the two that really stand out.
"I don't know how you would go picking between those two – if we went with two – but I would find that pretty hard, so we might have three or one because I might chicken out of that one."
