Ballantyne ready for another shot
The pocket rocket can't wait for Sunday's Carlton Mid Derby against West Coast
Hayden Ballantyne was so cut, he struggled to sleep for two weeks following Fremantle’s one-point loss to West Coast in the second Carlton Mid Derby of 2011.
The enigmatic forward’s after-the-siren set-shot sailed into the post after he was the recipient of a free-kick on the boundary line 55m out of goal.
He has been looking forward to Sunday’s 35th Carlton Mid Derby ever since.
“The last one really hurt, so a bit of redemption would be good this weekend,” Ballantyne said.
The 24-year-old said getting himself up for any AFL game was easy, but he admitted that the Derby was always a special occasion in Western Australia.
“Playing against West Coast gives you a big buzz with the hype around WA that surrounds the game,” he said.
Fremantle had won the previous seven Derbies before losing both fixtures to the Eagles in 2011.
Ballantyne missed the round 8 game with injury and tasted defeat against the Eagles for the first time while wearing a Freo jumper in round 18.
“It was the first time we’d lost against them since most of us have been on the playing list,” he said.
“So we’ll be hoping to get one back this week.”
Despite the magnitude of the Derby in WA, Ballantyne said Fremantle wouldn’t be wavering from the principal task at hand and would treat this match no differently to any other game.
“It really is about winning the game to start with,” he said.
“All the things that come afterwards, like bragging rights in WA, are just a bonus.”
One of the most polarising figures in the AFL, Ballantyne wasn’t too concerned with the reception he’d receive from a pro-West Coast crowd on Sunday.
“I cop it from every fan, but I suppose I might get a little bit extra from them.”