“A lot of people think I’m Indigenous, but I’m not,” he says.
His mother, Lynnette, was born in northern India, moving to Australia at the age of eight.
“I’m very proud to be Indian, so it’s good to let people know that I am,” Clancee says.
Lynnette met and married Des Pearce, a relationship that produced three children – son Jesse, daughter Ebynee and the baby of the family, Clancee.
The parents are no longer together, but Clancee’s relationship with both remains very strong.
Lynette is a carer at St Vincents nursing home in Guildford. A quiet person who treasures solitude, her mobile phone’s address book consists of her three children’s numbers and not much else.
She is not a fan of big crowds, which makes it a bit difficult to watch her son play football in person.
“She likes watching every game on TV or on the radio,” Clancee says. “I try and get her to the games but she doesn’t like the crowds.
“She’s very proud, she likes seeing me succeed.
“She’s always supportive, always calling and asking how I am, I try and get around and see her as much as I can.”
Clancee grew up in Perth’s Eden Hill, which he describes as a working-class suburb, and attended Guildford Grammar College.
He’s incredibly close with his father, Des, a taxi driver who also doubled as his junior football coach at the Noranda Hawks.
Clancee says his dad is ‘not anything special’, but that’s only referring to his occupation.
Des is the most remarkable person in Clancee’s life and someone he has always looked up to.
“He’s always been there and supported me through some tough times, like being delisted in 2011,” he says.
“He’s a hard worker, so I try and model myself and my life on what he does.
“He’s worked hard for what he’s got today, and I want to follow in his footsteps.”
Hard work is something Des instilled into Clancee from a young age.
As his coach at Noranda, he ensured his son maximised his potential.
“He was always a bit harder on me than the other kids because he could see I had a bit more potential and I could go a bit further,” Clancee says.
“But he never pushed me into things I never wanted to do, he was always supportive. He’d only push me if I wanted to be pushed.”
Clancee rates his father as one of the two most influential figures in his football career. The other is Ross Lyon.
Just a torpedo punt away from the Pearce household growing up was Bassendean Oval, home of the Swan Districts Football Club.
The Swans, or Black Ducks, as their fans affectionately know them, stay close to Clancee’s heart at all times. More precisely, his lower right leg, where a 2010 league premiership tattoo is proudly inked.
Clancee has some fond memories of his years at Swans, which included being a member of a talent-laden colts side in 2007 and 2008.
“We had about 12 or 13 who went on to play AFL,” he says.
West Coast’s Nic Naitanui, Carlton’s David Ellard, Jeff Garlett and Chris Yarran, Richmond’s Alex Rance and Brisbane’s Todd Banfield were some of those players who made it to the highest level.
“We won the premiership against Matt de Boer’s Claremont in 2007 and we went on to win it in 2008 as well,” Clancee adds.
The 2010 premiership was also won against the Tigers, by one point in one of the greatest matches in WAFL history.
“Andrew Krakouer played one of the best games I’ve ever seen,” Clancee says of the now-Collingwood forward who had 41 possessions and four goals, including the match-winner.
“I’ve had a good time at Swans. They’re a really good club and they’ve really supported me over the journey.”
Clancee isn’t the only Pearce who’s made a name for himself at Swan Districts.
His older brother, Jesse, now a fully qualified gas fitter, played 40-odd games at league level there, finishing up in 2006.
“He was a good footballer coming through juniors. I’ve always looked up to him and I still do,” Clancee says.
“He always calls me before games to wish me good luck.”
If his brother was a role model for him on the football field, it’s Clancee’s sister Ebynee who has been one off it.
A midwife, her caring, warm nature has always given Clancee a shoulder to lean on.
“She gives me life skills,” he says.
“If I’m having problems at home, I go to her. She’s been my rock.”
Clancee met his girlfriend, Jess, a year ago via each other’s sisters, who are both midwives.
They own two dogs, a French Bulldog named Bernard who prefers his ‘mother’, Jess, and Bella, a Chihuahua who loves cuddles, preferably from Clancee, who can’t resist her advances.
And the family is set to grow. Clancee and Jess are preparing to bring a child into the world.
“Jess fell pregnant about 12 weeks ago,” he says.
“It was good news to hear that, a bit of a shock at the start, but hopefully we can be good parents and have a healthy baby.”
The future is something Clancee has already planned for. A quiet individual, perhaps a trait he got from his mother, he enjoys the company of animals.
Through the AFL Sports Ready program, Clancee has dedicated 20 Mondays this season to volunteer at the RSPCA’s headquarters in Malaga.
“I help feed and walk the animals, assist with community education, and learn about the organisation and how they work,” he says.
“I’d like to get into an organisation like that because I’m really passionate about animals. It’s something I’d really like to pursue post-football.”
He and Jess have also purchased a house in Willagee recently, although it was in very coincidental circumstances.
“We wanted to move out and start our lives together, we saw a couple of houses under construction, so we put an offer in on one,” Clancee says.
“The next day, Paul Duffield, Luke McPharlin and David Mundy pulled me aside, so I thought I was in a bit of trouble.
“I was trying to find out what I’d done wrong, and they said ‘we realise you put an offer on a house’.
“I said ‘yeah, how’d you find out?’ They said it was their house.”
For the time being, Clancee Pearce will continue doing at the Freo Dockers what his father taught him at Noranda all those years back – work hard.
Much like Des the taxi driver, Clancee is ‘not anything special’ on the football field, but just like his dad, he’s worked extremely hard for everything he’s achieved.
And remember, he’s Indian.
