Fremantle forward Lachie Schultz is leaning on another of his skillsets to get himself through the league’s shutdown period, picking up the tools as a plumber while he’s back in Melbourne.
The 22-year-old said it was important to keep busy as players wait for news on when the season could potentially resume.
Schultz juggled life as a plumber and as a player for Williamstown in the VFL prior to being drafted ahead of the 2018 season.
After a brief stay at his hometown of Moama on the NSW/Victoria border, Schultz headed to Melbourne to get to work.
“It’s not really for the income side of things, it’s just to keep myself busy,” Schultz told 6PR.
“I’m in Melbourne as I’m back on the tools full time plumbing again, just trying to keep myself busy and working for my old boss.
“It’s also been a good opportunity to catch up with the couple of the other Fremantle boys that are back in Victoria.
“We’re keeping our social distancing, obviously, and there’s that possibility that we might be able to train with each other once things ease up a little bit.”
Schultz said he didn’t know when he would return to Perth, but he couldn’t wait to get on the plane.
“Hopefully tomorrow! I’d love that but I’ve got no idea unfortunately,” Schultz said.
“I absolutely love Perth. I’m a country boy. After living a couple of years in Melbourne…Perth has so much more of a home feeling to me because it’s just a big country town compared to Melbourne.
“I’ve settled in straight away. I don’t see myself going anywhere for as long as possible.”
Schultz spoke about his close bond with teammate Brett Bewley, who he played with at Williamstown before they were selected by Freo in the same draft.
The pair were among Freo’s standouts in the 2020 preseason. Bewley impressed on the training track and Schultz booted six goals in the Marsh Community Series.
“There’s a lot of positives to take out of our pre-season,” Schultz said.
“I think our competitiveness drove us a long way to try and get some good results on the board.
“It’s given us a lot of confidence going into the year when footy does go back.”
