I don't have any problems with the speech. He's mainly in MND mode for the week, but he's also taken time out for something else he cares about - the MFC. I think his topic was relevant to us - how much do some players think about themselves and their own performance above the team ethic? I think that has been an issue for us over the past 5 years. Just because we are improving as a team, doesn't mean we can't stand to have that message emphasised.
I think he's talking about total buy-in to the cause. Pushing as hard as possible with your teammates to get to your goal. Some players are just career footballers - they aren't all motivated by premierships. A lot of them are pragmatic guys who make a good living from football. Some of them will retire before the club can win a flag. Different people have different levels of buy-in. But if you have too many guys like that in your team, they are essentially robbing the other guys in the team that desperately want that success. I think Neale's speech was speaking to that. Think about how important this is to most of your teammates. Don't be content with playing well yourself and winning the odd game. We have had such a shit club culture for so long, I think we still need reminders about what it's all about.
The analogy with his struggle with MND might have been a little stretched - but not massively so. Selflessness vs selfishness is a battle going on in most people every day. It's something everybody should think about occasionally. And having a goal that you're passionate about and 100% bought into, makes it easier to do the hard yards to get there.
I think it was a lot better than a lot of televised "motivational" speeches. Neeld's speech was inept. That one Sheedy gave where he kept exploding with random loud words was even worse. Neale's was on point, succinct, and married up with our club's association with the Fight-MND campaign. So, Neale's speech sits just fine with me.