GUN OF A SUN
HE’S an ex- Tasmanian and now an ex- Docker too. Lachie Weller has joined the Gold Coast Suns and he opened up yesterday about his brother Maverick’s tense exit from the club in 2013,13, vowing that he and his family have moved on.n.
LACHIE Weller says his family has moved on from brother Maverick’s tense exit from the Suns, saying Gold Coast’s recent overhaul at the top level opened the door for him to return to where it all started.
The prized Suns recruit was caught up in the bitter split between now-St Kilda player Maverick and Gold Coast when he was a young academy player dreaming of joining his brother on the club’s senior list.
Maverick was an inaugural Suns player, taken as a 17-yearold access selection in 2010.
He went on to play 32 AFL games before being delisted at the end of 2013 and later voiced his discontent with the decision while taking aim at former coach Guy McKenna and the club’s operations.
Weller opened up about the toll it took on the family, but the now 21-year-old, who spent another 12 months in Gold Coast’s academy, said he left the Suns on good terms.
“I don’t hold a grudge or anything like that,” Weller said. “It was a pretty tough time, but I think if you look at the club now it has got completely different people that are running it now.
“I have got an attachment to the place I think through the Suns academy and having mates and stuff here.
“I always loved the place. All the stuff that happened with Mav did affect the whole family because we were really close. But we have moved on from that.”
Weller requested a trade to Gold Coast from Fremantle — where he played 47 games in three seasons — and arrived with draft pick 41 in exchange for the Suns’ No.2 selection.
He has signed a four-year deal with Gold Coast.
Weller revealed the trade came as a shock to Maverick and parents Kaz and Gregg who were all in the dark when it came to his intentions until late in the piece.
For Weller it was a move he spent a long time preparing for.
“I have got a sports psychologist outside of footy that I see and we put together the vision board,” Weller said.
“I had coming back to the Gold Coast Suns later in my career on it. It’s happened earlier than I thought.”
His partner Nicola’s parents live on the Gold Coast and Weller said his parents were also considering moving back to the city.