A friend of Tess Crosley — the woman at the centre of the Lachie Neale affair saga that resulted in the AFL star’s marriage breakdown — has issued a personal statement about the messy fallout, the unfair media coverage, and the online abuse Crosley has received.
Former journalist and PR consultant Lyall Mercer has called the media scrutiny of Crosley — that has included paparazzi shots — “unconscionable”, and says the social media “vitriol” is wrong.
“I do not represent Tess Crosley or her family in an official capacity, and I am not being paid by any party. I simply know Tess on a personal level and have seen the effects of recent media coverage on her,” Mercer said on LinkedIn.
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“More than three months ago, the news broke of a social media post from Jules Neale about her marriage, which put the spotlight not only on her family but on Tess.
“No one except those concerned know the details or facts behind what was said.
“Yet since that time, Tess has endured endless media coverage of her personal life that has resulted in ongoing social media vitriol, threats to her safety, and invasive public commentary.
“This has – and continues to take – a significant emotional toll on her wellbeing and, by extension of that, her family.”
He said he usually issued statements on behalf of others, but this one was personal.
“We’ve all read about Lachie and Jules Neale’s private challenges. But there is a darker side to the story that should send the media a wake-up call,” he said.
“Tess is not a public figure and it is unconscionable that photographers paid by media outlets have followed her for more than three months as she goes about her daily life at home, visiting the gym, shopping and even driving from Brisbane to the Gold Coast while visiting her family.
“There is no public interest in pictures of her on the beach with her son or dropping off her son to his father.
“Each media article is not only a gross invasion of her privacy but a trigger for more personal hatred and threats towards her on social media, leaving her more vulnerable.”
Just days ago it was reported that 30-year-old Crosley had deactivated her Instagram account, which was active as recently as last week.
Days earlier, she had shared a series of selfies, including images of herself in a low-cut white halter dress.
She captioned the post: “as of late x”.
Speculation around Crosley’s personal life has intensified in recent weeks, including commentary on social media.
In the comments of her latest post, one user wrote: “Monica Lewinsky #2.”
Crosley has not publicly responded to claims she was involved in the marriage breakdown of Lachie and Jules Neale.
At the end of March, Lachie Neale, a Brownlow medallist and premiership hero for the Brisbane Lions, also shared a glimpse into his emotional state on Instagram.
He posted a reflective social media update featuring moments with his children alongside a brief clip from the television series Peaky Blinders.
He included the scene as part of his recent Instagram photo carousel captioned “Tommy x”, a reference to the show’s main character, Tommy Shelby.
In the clip, Shelby asks love interest Grace Burgess to sing for him. When she asks whether he would prefer a happy or sad song, he replies, “Sad”.
“OK, but I warn you, I’ll break your heart,” she responds.
Shelby then answers, “Already broken”.
In the show, the exchange foreshadows Tommy’s eventual relationship with Grace, who becomes one of the great loves of his life, but spoiler: she then dies.
The dialogue seemingly pointed out Neale’s own emotional toll about the separation.
