Jydon, Matt and Jaxon Neagle ready for SANFL challenge with Central District

Merv Neagle is a significant name at Essendon, and now three of his sons are determined to make their mark on Central District after opting to test their game in the SANFL.

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Jydon Neagle has a tattoo on his chest which reads Mervyn Swervyn.

His younger brothers Matt, 20, and Jaxon, 18, have the words ‘mervyn swervyn neagle’ along with two dates tattooed on their arm.

Their father Merv Neagle was an Essendon premiership hero and 1980 Brownlow Medal runner-up, born on March 7, 1958 and killed in a truck accident in New South Wales on August 23, 2012. Those dates have special significance for the Neagle boys.

Matt (left), Jydon, 24 and Jaxon Neagle, sons of the late Essendon champion Merv Neagle, will play with Central District this season. Picture: Dean Martin/AAP

All three have their dad’s reputation for toughness and a fearless approach to the contest and they are traits Central District coach Roy Laird will be keen to exploit this season after signing with the Bulldogs.

Jydon, 24, described himself as being quiet away from the action, but driven by white line fever in games.

“When we were kids if we were ever a little soft or did the wrong thing, dad would get into you,” Jydon said. Then he chuckled and said: “He would tell us how tough he was and would always say about his teeth and how he got them knocked out in footy.

“We all knew it was from eating too many lollies. He didn’t have a big influence on us, none of us were ever coached by him.

“He was always in the background. He’d give us a few pointers here and there, but there was no pushing. If we did not want to play footy he did not care.”

The brothers had the option of playing with Essendon in the VFL. But Jydon said he had been there, done that, and they were seeking a new challenge.

Jydon and Matt still harbour dreams of playing in the AFL and they believe their best hope is to perform in the SANFL, claiming it was the best league outside the national competition.

Matt attracted plenty of AFL interest last season, only to dent his chances when he broke his arm and dislocated his elbow in August playing with his siblings for Wodonga Raiders in the Ovens and Murray League.

Four operations later, Matt said he is well ahead of schedule in his recovery and is optimistic of being available for the opening round.

Merv Neagle tackles Carlton great Mike Fitzpatrick.

Neagle flies for Essendon against Collingwood.

As well as testing their game in a stronger competition, the brothers were impressed with Laird’s disciplined, matter-of-fact approach.

“That is one of the things which got us over the line to come here,” Jydon said. “He sat down with us when we first came over for a look and told us what the club was about, what it wanted to be about and how they did it.

“We just went ‘sweet’. We had been coached by Daryn Cresswell in Wodonga and he is a very similar type of coach, that is what we like.”

While chatting with the Neagles in the house they will share, waiting for their furniture to arrive, Jaxon stood quietly in the background.

“They can do all the talking for me,” he said. “They annoy me sometimes, but it is good moving here with them.”

Asked if they fight, Jydon answered all the time. But he noted they were growing out of those backyard scuffles typical of competitive brothers.

“We had some ripper blues,” he said. “We have another brother (Nathan), he starts it all the time.”