LACHIE Neale has thrown his support behind Brisbane coach Chris Fagan, hoping the Lions' mentor is back "sooner rather than later" from his leave of absence.
Fagan is central to an impending AFL investigation into historical allegations regarding Hawthorn's treatment of its Indigenous players during his time at the club last decade.
Fagan and recently appointed North Melbourne coach Alastair Clarkson have both taken a leave of absence from their current roles while the investigation is being established.
Fresh off winning his third Merrett-Murray Medal in four seasons at the Lions, Neale said his teammates felt for Fagan, admitting it was a difficult situation for all involved.
"We love him as our coach, he's been a great supporter of us and we're a great supporter of him," Neale said.
"At the same time, we understand the process that has got to occur and we fully respect that.
"We're really mindful and caring and thoughtful of our Indigenous players as well. We know it's a tough time for them, so we're trying to wrap our arms around those guys.
"We're a family, Fages is part of that, and in my experience he's been nothing but caring.
"We'll let that process figure itself out and hopefully he's with us sooner rather than later."
Neale said he had briefly chatted with Fagan but was largely leaving the coach to his own devices.
Fagan was absent from Brisbane's best and fairest count on Friday night, but the club played a pre-recorded video message from its coach.
Fagan spoke about the seasons of ups and downs, while also paying tribute to retiring Mitch Robinson and free agent departure Dan McStay.
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"There were some tough moments along the way, but we found a way to get ourselves into the top four teams in the competition, which shouldn't go under-estimated or not acknowledged. It's an important achievement," he said.
"I would very much like tonight to be a real celebration of the year. Have good conversations and talk about the future of what we may well do and dream about what we can do and be optimistic about what we can do."
