IT’S been quite an eventful start to life at Wolves for striker Freddy Eastwood.
A debut Wolves goal followed by a short, sharp burst of a few more – a debut Wales goal followed then by another – then finding himself dropped before last weekend allegedly dropping someone else in a Basildon nightclub.
With Eastwood having so far probably wisely kept his own counsel on his police caution following Saturday night’s fracas, Mick McCarthy today answered questions on the subject in his usual forthright and honest way.
The crux of his response was that unfortunately incidents like this tend to follow footballers around - an “occupational hazard� if you like.
McCarthy himself has presumably found himself on the end of several flashpoints down the years – wrong place, wrong time, and then, as he admitted, “you find yourself in a situation over which you have no control.�
Without ever condoning whatever transpired last weekend, having spoken to his striker McCarthy is certainly not going overboard other than reminding his players of the potential pitfalls when they are out and about - as Eastwood was perfectly legitimately - on the night after a game.
The player himself is also far from the sort of footballing bad boy which the tabloid press were probably hoping for after discovering the story.
Quiet, reserved, and a dedicated family man, Eastwood is one of those unassuming types who likes to go into training or a match, get the job done, and then depart with a minimum of fuss.
He has already spoken of taking advantage of his switch to Wolves to also explore new boundaries, and move away from the area he has occupied all his life - as has been well documented - as a Romany gipsy.
Perhaps last Saturday’s incident was sparked partly fuelled by a sense of frustration at having been an unused substitute against Norwich, sparking the chain of events which saw Eastwood head straight back to his Basildon roots and straight into an unsavoury mess.
But his time will come again – he’s too good a player for it not to.
As to the other side of things, while footballers quite clearly live a privileged and cash-filled existence the rest of us can only dream of, clearly there are also some perils and pitfalls which can often go to prove they are only human.
Satisfying the never-ending stream of autograph hunters and dealing with our incessant demand for interviews is one thing.
Being viewed as legitimate targets for those more envious members of society wishing to take a pop either verbally or physically is quite another.
And in those instances it must take the patience of a saint – or even be almost impossible - to simply turn the other cheek.
Comments (1)
Is Freddie Eastwood any relation to Chris Westwood?
Posted by Kevin Northwood | September 30, 2007 10:18 AM
Posted on September 30, 2007 10:18