Davis Joins The Legends

By Ken Casellas

Legendary Claremont footballers Sammy Clarke and Ken Caporn are indisputably the greatest defenders in the club’s hundred-year history, and each wore the No. 18 jumper with wonderful skill, determination and pride.

And now the No. 18 jumper is worn by tall left-footer Anthony Davis, who will join Clarke, Caporn, Steve Goulding and Tom Matson as the players with that number who have notched one hundred league games for the Tigers when he leads the side into action against East Fremantle at Revo Fitness Stadium on Saturday.

The 24-year-old Davis, born in Albany and brought up on the family’s wheat and sheep farm in Borden, will become Claremont’s 107TH centurion.

“I have loved my time at Claremont, and it has been a joy to play in such a strong defensive unit,” said Davis, who made an auspicious senior debut in the round one match against Subiaco at Leederville Oval on July 18, 2020, when the season began late because of the coronavirus pandemic.

“I remember travelling to the game with Cal England and Isaac Barton, and on the way, we were saying ‘let’s hope we don’t get blown out by ten goals because Subiaco had hardly lost a game for five years.’

“I lined up in a back pocket, and we had a good day. Declan Hardisty did his shoulder and went forward where he kicked four goals, and we won by 20 points.”

Such is the passage of time that the only teammates of Davis on that day who are still playing at Claremont are Hardisty, England, Bailey Rogers, Alec Waterman and Ollie Eastland.

Davis was a boarder at Hale School from Year 7 to Year 12 and he was a member of the school’s two winning Alcock Cup teams which were coached by former Claremont and Fremantle Dockers stars Jason Norrish and Brad Wira. School teammates England, Max Spyvee and Logan Guelfi are still playing at Claremont this year.

Davis made an early start in football, playing in Auskick ranks when in Year one at primary school, and he joined Claremont as a member of the club’s under-14 development squad before graduating to colts football in 2018.

“Claremont won the colts grand final at Optus Stadium in 2019 when I was playing on a wing,” said Davis who emerged as a hero when he took an intercept mark from a Peel Thunder kick out of defence with just over two minutes remaining. He scored a goal and Claremont got up to defeat Peel by five points.

“I played a lot of junior footy as a forward, and I used to love kicking a goal — and I still do.”

In his first three years in senior ranks Davis played 36 league games and 13 with the reserves side before he became a regular and notched 60 or 70 consecutive league games before he missed a match last year, suffering a calf injury.

Davis enjoyed an outstanding season in 2023 when he finished third behind Eastland and Jye Bolton in the club’s fairest-and-best award.

He says that playing in the 2022 grand final at Leederville Oval and losing narrowly to West Perth was the lowlight of his career. “That drives you to win a premiership,” he said. “And hopefully we can make a push for it this year.”

Davis, who is a fully qualified carpenter, is a regular golfer who enjoys playing with teammates England, Rogers, Zac Mainwaring, Sam Alvarez and Joey Matthews. He has yet to score a hole in one, but he was delighted when he landed a 55-metre bomb to score a goal late in the opening quarter of last Saturday’s match against South Fremantle.