It wouldn’t be a newsworthy story to say that Lachie Neale will don the cover of the yearly AFL Record Season Guide book.
The Brisbane superstar was a somewhat controversial but still deserving 2023 Brownlow Medallist, polling 31 votes ahead of the Bulldogs’ Marcus Bontempelli (29) and Collingwood’s Nick Daicos (28), who missed the last three games of the year.
But, as always, winning the AFL’s top individual honour earned him the right to be the cover boy of the annual statistical bible which includes years of data and is used by commentators and experts throughout the season.
Except it seems nobody told Collingwood fans about that.
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After the AFL Record announced the book was available for pre-order, it received dozens of comments from angry Magpies fans, questioning why a player from the team their side beat in the Grand Final was pictured.
“Who won the flag? doubt many will sell (crying laughing emoji),” one Magpies fan wrote.
Another quipped: “Runners up edition: When does the premiership edition come out?”
Yet another said: “Poor form. Certainly not worth $50. You really didn’t think this through.”
But as a fourth wrote: “It’s always been the Brownlow medallist. I’m embarrassed to be associated with some Pies fans, far out!”
As AAP journalist Oliver Caffrey pointed out, Collingwood’s Nathan Buckley featured on the cover of the 2004 edition despite having lost the previous year’s Grand Final.
Likewise Collingwood’s Dane Swan was pictured on the 2012 book cover, after his team lost the previous Grand Final to Geelong.
Of course, this is because both men won the previous season’s Brownlow Medal.
“The comments on this thread can’t be for real?” Caffrey asked.
Hey – you can never count out a one-eyed fan.
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