Geelong Cats forward Shannon Neale joins Keanu Pinder and Ben Henshall while at Perth Wildcats training

Geelong key forward Shannon Neale has continued the trend of home grown AFL players appearing at prominent WA sporting locations with the 203cm big man attending Perth Wlidcats training and meeting players and officials. Neale, who had a breakout year for the Cats with 23 goals from his 15 games, played basketball as a youngster but was more focused on his promising athletics career. An avid Wildcats fan, he attends games when they play in Victoria or when he’s back in Perth during the AFL off-season. The 22-year-old said watching a professional team training for a different sport had been eye opening. “I’ve loved it. I like seeing the nitty gritty stuff. It’s been good to watch and they’re looking good,” Neale told The West Australian. “It’s their attitude and the work ethic that you can see on their faces when they train that stands out. You can see they always want to get better. And the attention to detail is something I really love watching. “With them being on an away stretch, unfortunately I can’t get to go to a game during this period of time. But I feel really fortunate that I was able to come to training.” Neale’s appearance at the Wildcats comes just days after Western Bulldogs captain Marcus Bontempelli led a training session with multiple teammates at West Coast’s headquarters in Lathlain. It also followed the Wildcats hosting Adelaide Crows coach Matthew Nicks before their win over the Adelaide 36ers in South Australia. Fremantle Dockers coaching staff have also often been seen at Wildcats training across recent seasons. Neale was recruited from South Fremantle as the 33rd pick in the 2020 draft and is keen to build upon his 2024 after playing in the preliminary final loss to Brisbane. “I”m feeling fit and healthy. Hopefully I’m in for a big year. The result from last year was disappointing so hopefully we can go one better,” he said. The Wildcats will travel to New Zealand this week to face the Breakers on Sunday. New Zealand will be without star import Parker Jackson-Cartwright due to suspension and will enter the game knowing the conceded 59 points to Bryce Cotton the last time they played.