Peter Motley was a welcome visitor to Visy Park today, joining club members in an audience with the Carlton President Stephen Kernahan and the former premiership player Anthony Koutoufides, in what was the inaugural Luncheon celebrating the former captains at the multi-million dollar redevelopment.
 
Motley, conspicuous by his presence at AAMI Stadium for the Round 11 match against Port Adelaide, jetted in from South Australia yesterday and will be part of the massive audience for Friday night’s sell-out with Hawthorn at Etihad Stadium.
 
“I’ve come over with a few friends to watch Carlton play Hawthorn. I might even try and get down to the rooms after the game,” Motley said.
 
“We’re staying at a hotel not far from the ground, but I had to give the driver directions to the Carlton Football Club . . . maybe he was from Adelaide!”
 
Motley was just 22 years old and 19 games into his playing career when he almost lost his life in an horrific car crash in Clifton Hill. It was May 1987, and one of the game’s acknowledged rising stars was lost to the field of play forever.
 
But ‘Mots’ has always made it back, as his old South Australian contemporary Kernahan explained.
 
“I saw him in Adelaide earlier this year, and he always catches up here in Melbourne at this time. It’s always great to see ‘Mots’ here and ‘Braddles’(Craig Bradley) is one of his all-time great mates, and he’s a Carlton man forever,” Kernahan said.
 
“He’s very loyal. He loves the double Blues in Sturt and the old dark Navy Blues here in Carlton.”