{"id":380250,"date":"2025-12-30T10:54:11","date_gmt":"2025-12-30T10:54:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/380250\/"},"modified":"2025-12-30T10:54:11","modified_gmt":"2025-12-30T10:54:11","slug":"single-lachie-neale-throwaway-line-is-at-the-centre-of-a-bizarre-theory-about-his-marriage-breakdown-being-spread-by-footy-fans","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/380250\/","title":{"rendered":"Single Lachie Neale throwaway line is at the centre of a bizarre theory about his marriage breakdown being spread by footy fans"},"content":{"rendered":"

A bizarre theory has been seized upon by\u00a0AFL<\/a>\u00a0fans trying to justify Lachie Neale’s marriage breakdown allegedly involving his wife’s close friend.<\/p>\n

The speculation has gained traction online as supporters attempt to rationalise the personal scandal engulfing the Brisbane Lions<\/a>\u00a0captain.<\/p>\n

Neale and his wife Jules have separated, with Jules publicly describing herself as feeling deeply betrayed<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Both Jules’s former close friend Tess Crosley and her husband Ben have been photographed without their wedding rings.<\/p>\n

Neither Neale nor those reportedly involved have confirmed what specifically occurred.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Now, some footy fans have come forward with the claim Neale’s behaviour can be traced back to how he was treated during the early days of his relationship with Jules.<\/p>\n

\"Lachie <\/p>\n

Lachie and his wife Jules Neale pictured with Tess and Ben Crosley in happier times before the alleged affair became public<\/p>\n

\"Tess <\/p>\n

Tess and Jules were close friends but have now unfollowed each other on social media\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Ben <\/p>\n

Ben and Lachie were also good friends, but Ben has surfaced without his wedding ring while Lachie is reportedly back home in South Australia<\/p>\n

According to the narrative being shared, the couple’s courtship left a lasting impression on the future Brownlow medallist.<\/p>\n

Neale and Jules first met in a nightclub when he was just 18 years old and she was 21.<\/p>\n

At the time, Neale was still an emerging footballer with little public profile.<\/p>\n

Jules later admitted she was not interested at all when they first crossed paths.<\/p>\n

‘The first time I met Jules I was 18 and I asked Pav [former Fremantle star Matthew Pavlich] to introduce me to her,’ Neale told Perth Now in 2019.<\/p>\n

‘He came back and said, “She’s not interested in an 18-year-old Harry Styles-looking kid”.’<\/p>\n

Neale was persistent, though, and the pair continued to see each other intermittently before eventually forming a serious relationship.<\/p>\n

They went on to marry in Perth in 2018, six years after that infamous One Direction snub.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Tess <\/p>\n

Tess posted a series of bikini-clad photos enjoying time with friends on Christmas Day in northern NSW<\/p>\n

\"She <\/p>\n

She was then spotted back in her home town of the Gold Coast not appearing to be wearing her wedding ring<\/p>\n

\"A <\/p>\n

A downcast Ben Crosley was spotted in Brisbane leaving a local service station, also not appearing to be wearing his wedding ring<\/p>\n

Online commentators have now speculated that Neale never forgot that early rejection.<\/p>\n

‘Looks like he didn’t forget all the times the wifey knocked him back before settling when he had a high enough profile,’ one posted.<\/p>\n

‘Mate 100% not many people know this,’ another replied.<\/p>\n

Neither Neale nor Jules has ever indicated that their early dating history caused tension.<\/p>\n

Despite this, the idea has been eagerly embraced by parts of the footy community.<\/p>\n

Neale himself previously spoke glowingly about his wife and her support. In 2020, he publicly praised Jules after winning the Brownlow Medal.<\/p>\n

‘She always puts me ahead of herself when she shouldn’t have to,’ he said in 2020.<\/p>\n

‘She’s the most selfless person I know and my biggest support.’<\/p>\n

\"Jules <\/p>\n

Jules made a single public statement saying she had been ‘betrayed’ while Lachie is yet to make comment<\/p>\n

Their relationship faced a major test when Neale requested a trade from Fremantle to Brisbane. The couple relocated from Perth to Queensland in 2019 following the move.<\/p>\n

‘It was a lot of work to build that business up and it was a big thing to leave behind,’ she said in 2020.<\/p>\n

‘I kind of knew (Brisbane) was the right move for Lachie and footy and it was a decision I decided to make myself. He didn’t pressure me. He said ‘We’ll stay here’. He felt Perth was home. He said ‘It is completely up to you’.<\/p>\n

The couple went on to build a life in Brisbane and start a family. They share two young children together.<\/p>\n

It has been reported that Jules and the children have returned to Western Australia, while Lachie is spending time his home town of Robe in South Australia.<\/p>\n

Tess Crosley posted bikini-clad Christmas photos from near Byron Bay, which drew significant attention and were notable for her not wearing her wedding ring.\u00a0<\/p>\n

She was recently seen back on the Gold Coast, again without her wedding ring, as public interest in her movements continues.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Ben Crosley was recently photographed in Brisbane looking downcast as he was leaving a service station with energy drinks and water, and also appeared to be without his wedding ring.<\/p>\n

He has largely remained out of the spotlight while the situation continues to unfold.\u00a0<\/p>\n

There have been no public statements from the Crosleys, who were close friends of the Neales before the scandal broke.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A bizarre theory has been seized upon by\u00a0AFL\u00a0fans trying to justify Lachie Neale’s marriage breakdown allegedly involving his…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":380251,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[560],"tags":[638,64,63,55,639,3237,100,588,85],"class_list":{"0":"post-380250","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-afl","8":"tag-afl","9":"tag-au","10":"tag-australia","11":"tag-australian-football-league","12":"tag-australianfootballleague","13":"tag-brisbane-lions","14":"tag-dailymail","15":"tag-sport","16":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/380250","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=380250"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/380250\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/380251"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=380250"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=380250"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=380250"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}