Both boys are 18, and while they played their junior footy at different teams, Pearce with the Devonport Magpies and Grey at Freo partner club Burnie Dockers, they know each other very well.
“I’ve played football and cricket with and against Brady for as long as I can remember,” Pearce said.
“We’re good mates, we live about 25 minutes away from each other.”
“We’ve known each other since we were five or six, we used to play soccer together,” Grey added.
“We’ve both comes through the ranks with cricket and football and this year we played state together.
“Alex has become one of my best mates and we are fortunate enough to be on the same list together.”
The Tasmanian recruits both agree each other’s presence will make the transition to Fremantle easier.
“I think moving away is going to be tough, but with Alex there it’s going to make it a lot more easier to settle,” Grey said.
Both were elite cricketers, while Grey also excelled at soccer.
It was only recently that Grey decided football was the way to go.
“I used to play heaps of footy while I was 13 and 14, but then I took a couple of years off to play soccer,” he said.
“At the start of the year I thought I was going to play soccer in Tasmania, then I got the opportunity to play state footy so I gave up soccer and cricket.”
Both players can’t wait to arrive at their new AFL club and hit the ground running in the pre-season.
And their goals for their first year in the system are similar.
Pearce wants to develop and improve.
“It’s not necessarily about getting games in my first year, but I’m really keen to give it a real go in my first two years and hopefully play a game,” he said.
“But firstly I need to work hard and earn some respect from my teammates.”
Grey echoed those thoughts.
“First off, I just want to get used to my new teammates and the training and the coaches,” he said.
“I’ve never done a full pre-season, so that’s my first goal.”
