Speaking after his side’s 66-point loss to Hawthorn at the MCG on Friday night, Neeld said it was imperative not to chop and change just for the sake of immediate success.
“You’ve got to stay the course and you’ve got to stay true to what you believe - and this is what we’re doing,” he said.
Neeld said he was fully aware when he came into the club that it was not going to be a short term fix to turn it around.
“As long as communication is really important - and it’s clear communication and it’s constant - that’s what we’re having,” he said.
“The footy club is really well set up. The work the board’s done in the last four years to get them on an even financial keel and an elite training facility - they’ve set that up.
“There is constant communication, and as long as there are no surprises along the way between the footy department and the board, which there is not.
“There is constant communication and everyone knows exactly what it was going to look like and where we’re at - and that’s our job.”
Although Neeld said the club didn’t plan to be “zero and whatever” after seven rounds, he did acknowledge what the season could’ve have produced entering 2012.
But Neeld understood that this start to the season was hard for the red and blue faithful to endure.
“Granted, it can be difficult week by week, but the public and you guys (the media) just see the outcome, which is short term,” he said.
“We spoke at length about how it could look,” he said.
