The club’s first ever Regional School Holiday Programme provided a terrific opportunity for children aged 6 to 12 to have fun and learn footy skills from Fremantle players.
The children were taken through the basic fundamentals of Aussie Rules football in a fun environment by the likes of Johnny 'The Doc' Docker, Byron Schammer, Andrew Browne, Robert Warnock and Michael Warren.
Warren hails from Bunbury and played his junior footy with South Bunbury Football Club, fittingly their home ground is Hands Oval.
“It’s great to be back here where it all started for me as a junior with all these kids,” he said. “The boys love running the clinics as the children get so much out of the sessions and hopefully our time here encourages some of them to consider a career in football.”
Warren was scouted by Fremantle playing for South Bunbury Football Club in 2002 and was convinced to try his luck in the WAFL and made the move the following year to Claremont where he played six (6) league games in 2003. His early progress convinced Fremantle’s recruiting team to give him an opportunity on the club’s rookie list for the next two seasons and he was rewarded for his hard work in 2006 when he was elevated to the primary list, leading to his debut in Round 7 at the MCG - a long way from home.
“I still have family and friends in Bunbury and it’s a great feeling to be back home and for me to be here giving back to my community,” he said.
Although the clinic was run in Bunbury, some children had travelled from Perth and Bunbury’s surrounding areas to take part in this unique experience. All participants received a team poster and a purple Sherrin footy which by the end of the morning were covered in autographs with Jeff Farmer’s signature the most sought after.
