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“We’re still on good terms”: Lobb reiterates Ugle-Hagan support amid reports of rift
Lachlan Geleit • March 11th, 2025 3:59 pm
Western Bulldogs defender Rory Lobb has reiterated that he and teammate Jamarra Ugle-Hagan are on good terms.
Lobb initially addressed rumours of a rift between himself and his teammate on TikTok after Sam McClure reported on Nine that Ugle-Hagan had to regain the trust of Luke Beveridge, Marcus Bontempelli and the defender to be considered for selection again.
That story came on the back of Ugle-Hagan spending considerable time away from the club this off-season as he’s dealt with what SEN chief reporter Sam Edmund described as a complex situation.
Speaking to Dwayne Russell on SEN Afternoons, Lobb confirmed that his relationship with Ugle-Hagan was still ‘really good’ as he hopes to wrap his arms around the 22-year-old as he pushes to return to football.
“Jamarra and I are all good,” Lobb told SEN Afternoons.
“Obviously he lived with us - myself and my partner - towards the back end of last year.
“We're still on good terms. We’re really good. I’m just hoping we can get around him and get him back to playing some footy.
“He's got a few personal things to go through, but we're just trying to put our arms around him as a football club and try to get him back to playing some football.”
Lobb isn’t the only one of the reported trio who has made an effort with Ugle-Hagan recently, with captain Marcus Bontempelli confirming on SEN that he met with the young forward outside of the club for a coffee to talk through his ongoing situation.
With Ugle-Hagan not at the club as much as his teammates over the off-season, Lobb has been trying to make the forward feel welcomed back since he returned to the club last month.
“I'm trying to get around him when he's at the football club,” Lobb said.
“Obviously, he’s spent a bit of time away and he's coming back. I'm just trying to make him feel comfortable around the football club because he's obviously not been on the day-to-day program as everyone else has sort of been on.
“I’m just trying to make him feel comfortable through the day-to-day, and obviously like Marcus, trying to catch up and see where he’s at.”
While Lobb is backing Ugle-Hagan to make a successful playing return, he says that’s not the priority as the club looks to help him work through his off-field issues first.
“Obviously he's got to get his body right to play AFL football, but that's in the future,” Lobb said.
“We just want to make sure that he's right as a person and with the mental demands of playing football.”
Listen to the full chat with Lobb and Russell here.
