A Christmas welcome for our Freddie

A Christmas welcome for our Freddie


                    

Above: Welcoming back the Prodigal son. L-R Mark Gauci, Jack Newman, Freddie Priestley, Matt Thomas,
Benjamin Pearson and Michael Ozbun. Front - Bede Gannon, Ben Thomas and Daniel Comande.

Moonee Valley welcomed back a favorite son when Freddie Priestley breezed in to Melbourne on Christmas Day.

Freddie played a season at the Valley as a teenager in 2014/15, before returning home to England. But he came back to Australia earlier this month to follow the fortunes of his country in the Ashes, and came to Melbourne for a week for the Boxing Day Test.

At left: Freddie's Australian family: Back - Benjamin Pearson and Charlie Walker. Front - Caroline, Adele and Nigel Walker and Freddie Priestley.

He brought UK teammate Benjamin Pearson across from the west, where he's playing for Fremantle. With the Christmas break, it was perfect time for the two mates to come across to the Fourth Test.

Freddie and Benjamin were lined up to stay with the Walker family, where Freddie lived in his season across here.

They also found time to go down to the Ormond Park pavilion in the late afternoon of Christmas Day, to catch up with past teammates and to have one last look at the old pavilion before our redevelopment takes place.

While we didn't get a chance to get Freddie into the whites on his short trip to Melbourne, he's assessing his future options after a planned university course back home. And while we had the opportunity we also put a bit of work into Benjamin as a future Valleys player.