Fred Davenport made his debut for Subiaco in 1971, and played 159 games for the Maroons, mainly as a half back. A pacy, close checking, hard tackling defender, he was also well suited to the specialist back pocket position, and it was there that he played both his State games in 1974. A member of the memorable 1973 premiership side, Davenport was first and foremost a team player. Consistency was his forte’, and he was a player who mirrored the old saying”played for the guernsey.”  The 1973 premiership broke a forty nine year drought for Subiaco, and Fred Davenport was a key mover in it. He was also a leading player in the Australian club Championship of State Premiers the same year, with Subiaco eventually going down to Richmond by 13 points. Fred said that being a defender in the WAFL of the seventies meant that you always had a hard opponent, whoever you played.  “The Krakouer boys from Claremont kept me on my toes, and Perth’s Brian Cousins was always tough.” The champ Peter Featherby headed Davenport’s list of top teammates, and he also had a high regard for Keith Watt. Accountability was a feature of his career in defence, and this is an area he is critical of in today’s AFL. “ Guys just don’t check their opponents” he said. “They let the opposition have the ball and sit off them”  Fred has some stories to tell, too many for the space Memory Lane has.  But we thought we’d like to share one with you.  In 1973 Subiaco received a walloping from South Fremantle. After the game coach Ross Smith called a meeting during which he called tough backman Colin “Evil” Williams a “pussycat”. The team responded the following week with an eight goal win over East Perth. In the showers after the game, the bruise that almost covered the right side of Williams’s body was testament to the five or six shirtfronts that must have left Royals rover Hans Verstegen in even worse shape. That match was also notorious for the controversial post match outburst by Subiaco President Brian Singleton, when he informed umpire Ron Powell that he wasn’t welcome in the Subiaco rooms any more, after  a free kick count of 43 to 18 against the Maroons. Fred Davenport was a good player for Subiaco through the good times and bad, and he is a worthy addition to the gathering of stars in Ozfooty’s memory lane.