Alex Neal-Bullen Biography

At just 22 years of age, Alex Neal-Bullen knows he's fortunate to be playing before crowds of more than 90,000 people in blockbuster finals matches for the Demons deep into September.

Although Neal-Bullen wasn't there for much of the club's dark days between 2006 and 2018, he's acutely aware of its history – as well as how much this September means to the fans.

"Seeing the older boys … those boys who have been around here for so long and haven't had too much success over time. You look at their faces and it reminds you how hard they've worked for it," he said.

"It's one of those things. You've got to take it while you've got it, but understand that hard work gets you in the position you're in."

Alex Neal-Bullen's career trajectory changed dramatically with Simon Goodwin's ascension to senior coach in 2017.

In that time, the 22-year-old has averaged 18.1 disposals, 4.5 tackles, three inside 50s and a goal in 41 of a possible 44 matches playing as the modern 'high half-forward'.

"Goody's had the biggest impact on me. I felt a part of the team from the time he came across as senior coach," Neal-Bullen said.

"It's not that I didn't feel a part of it beforehand, but he gave me this new level of confidence to play as a forward, and I was more than happy to do that for him."

Alex Neal-Bullen has covered the most distance of any player in the AFL four games into the 2018, clocking in at 17.2km so far.

"He's a kid that's turned his career around in the last couple of years and it's as much his mindset and his willingness to work hard on the field as it is his physical capacity." Demons elite performance manager Dave Misson said of Neal-Bullen.

"Threshold running is the biggest indicator of what is, essentially, work rate. It doesn't surprise us that he's punching out big numbers there."

Melbourne re-signs 21-year-old forward Alex Neal-Bullen to a new two-year deal, keeping him at the club at least until the end of 2019.

"Alex had a frustrating year last year in terms of AFL selection, however we thought that he improved significantly during the year," general manager of football operations Josh Mahoney.

"This year his development has been rewarded with selection and we have seen his performances improve throughout the season."

Melbourne has continued to show faith in the development of its young talent, re-signing Alex Neal-Bullen and Billy Stretch until the end of 2017.

"Alex and Billy have adapted really quickly to the demands of being AFL players," Melbourne football operations boss Josh Mahoney said.

"Both of them were able to play 11 AFL games in their first year and with a full pre-season leading into next year and the year after, we think they’re going to continue to develop into good AFL players."

Alex Neal-Bullen makes his AFL debut for Melbourne at Docklands Stadium with 11 disposals (4 kicks and 7 handballs), 2 marks and a tackle in a 2-point loss to St Kilda.

Alex Neal-Bullen has dislocated his knee for the second time in just over a month but the Demons are hopeful the 18-year-old will only be sidelined for up to three weeks.

"Alex had an incident at the end of training yesterday where he dislocated his patella," Demons football manager Josh Mahoney said.

"It's the same knee that he dislocated pre-Christmas in a wrestling session. This is only a minor dislocation and we'd expect him to recover quite quickly."

Melbourne selects Alex Neal-Bullen with pick No.40 in the 2014 NAB AFL Draft.

"He is a hard inside midfielder who is an elite runner having run a sub-10 minute three kilometre run," Melbourne's recruiting manager Jason Taylor said.

"He will help bring that mix into the midfield of hard running and he played consistent senior football with Glenelg."