Brisbane superstar Lachie Neale has revealed he played out the AFL grand final after feeling “something snap” during the massive win over Sydney.
Neale has been battling a foot injury throughout the finals series, barely training through the week as he struggled with the pain.
The two-time Brownlow medallist showed no signs of the injury on Saturday as he racked up 35 touches — the most of any player on the ground — and nine clearances.
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He had been receiving injections to manage the pain throughout the games.
And speaking to Channel 7 after the game, Neale revealed the injury might be worse after an incident midway through the final quarter.
“Something snapped in it halfway through that last quarter,” he said.
“I was fine when I jabbed it up, I couldn’t feel it. During the week it was very painful, once we jabbed it up it was fine.”
Neale was lost for words after winning the first premiership of his career.
He was a member of last year’s losing side, while he also played for Fremantle in their loss to Hawthorn in 2013.
“I can’t really put it into words, I bloody love this group. No words can describe how proud I am and how much I love this group. It’s unbelievable,” he said.
“At the start of the year everyone was questioning us and I think we were 13th at the turn.
“Just so proud of this club and this group, just such an amazing club to be a part of and such an amazing feeling of pride.”
Neale has won two Brownlow Medals since joining the Lions and finished second behind Will Ashcroft in the Norm Smith Medal voting on Saturday.
But none of the individual awards matter for the superstar.
“It’s such a throwaway line when people say ‘I’d give my Brownlow back’, but for this feeling, for today, for how it’s all panned out, I’d do it a thousand times over,” he said.
Neale and Norm Smith Medal winner Ashcroft starred in the 18.12 (120) to 9.6 (60) victory at the MCG on Saturday, which completes the Lions’ long climb to the summit under Chris Fagan.
The 63-year-old took over eight years ago after a three-win season and is now the competition’s oldest premiership coach.
He is also the first flag-winning tactician who never played a senior game.
Fittingly, legendary former coach Leigh Matthews presented the premiership cup to Fagan, co-captains Neale and Harris Andrews and former skipper Dayne Zorko, having steered the Lions to a famous hat-trick of flags in 2001-2003.
In rising from fifth, Brisbane became just the second team under the current finals system – introduced in 2000 – to win the premiership from outside the top four.
Ashcroft joined his father Marcus as a Lions premiership player and was best afield in front of 100,013 fans.
– With AAP
