Brisbane’s star midfielder Lachie Neale has avoided surgery following his foot injury during the Lions’ premiership performance on Saturday.
Neale played the second half of 2024 with a heel concern and underwent scans on Tuesday, revealing he had torn his plantar fascia in the grand final.
The dual Brownlow medallist discussed surgical advice with the club and concluded surgery was not required following the consultation.
The Lions co-captain was evidently unhampered by the injury in the grand final, finishing second in the Norm Smith Medal voting after accumulating 35 disposals and nine clearances in Brisbane’s enormous 60-point victory.
Despite his lingering heel concern, Neale was majorly influential in Brisbane’s fairytale finals run, including a 31-disposal, 12-clearance effort to drag the Lions back from a 25-point deficit against the Cats. Succeeding the grand final, Neale was determined to be the best player throughout the finals series, winning the Gary Ayres Award.
Following the premiership celebrations, Neale was in a moon boot for the parade in Fitzroy on Sunday. The 31-year-old will continue to wear a moon boot for the next four to six weeks and will avoid weight-bearing on his injured foot.
After this recovery period, Neale’s progress will be assessed, aiming to return to running in six to eight weeks. Should the premiership Lion progress smoothly, he will be likely to return as soon as after Christmas.
Neale joins a group of notable injured Lions, those of which who were unfortunate to miss the flag charge. Oscar McInerney will have surgery on his shoulder that was injured in the preliminary final, whilst Keidean Coleman, Tom Doedee, Lincoln McCarthy and Darcy Gardiner all continue to recover from ACL tears.
