Vale Ron Reed, a scribe for all sporting seasons

Not many journalists can write with authority across the spectrum of sports — Ron Reed was one of the few who could.

News Corp journalist Ron Reed.

The day I met Ron Reed was very good for me, but not so good for him.

I was editing my first edition of The Sunday Herald in Melbourne. It was Saturday, October 6, 1990. Reed was at the MCG reporting on the AFL grand final. It pained Reed – as committed a Carlton fan as to be found – to report on a historic premiership win by Collingwood. Its first in 32 years.

He was further disappointed to be introduced to the new editor down the pub that night in a black and white beanie and scarf.

But Reed had written a brilliant report for the front page on one of the biggest days in sport. The following day Sydney’s Telegraph and Mirror and Melbourne’s Herald and Sun would merge to form Australia’s first 24-hour newspapers. Reed’s byline was regularly prominent in all those mastheads.

Few journalists can write with authority across the spectrum of sports. Most are expert in a few – football in winter, cricket in summer, perhaps. Reed covered both those and cycling, yachting, athletics, horse racing and tennis. And those who competed in those sports, along with those who administered them, took Reed very seriously.

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Ron Reed

Born: Ballarat, June 24, 1947

Died: Melbourne, June 3, 2022

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Indeed, in 1996 he changed the course of one of the sports he covered with such colour and command. On January 31 that year Tamil Tiger terrorists launched a suicide attack on Colombo’s Central Bank of Sri Lanka, with machine guns, RPGs and 200kgs of explosives. More than 90 people were killed and 1400 injured. Reed was there ahead of the Australian team’s upcoming World Cup encounter with Sri Lanka and filed a column to the Herald Sun urging the Australian Cricket Board to abandon the match. Guided by Reed’s reliable report it did, leading to the only forfeited match in the contest’s history.

Reed was born in Ballarat. As a youngster the family moved to Dennington outside Warrnambool. In the fifth year at Warrnambool High School a teacher, noting Reed’s skills at English, suggested he approach the Warrnambool Standard for a cadetship. He was employed as an assistant proof reader. When another youngster – later to be legendary racing writer Keith Hillier – left for The Sun, Reed started training as a journalist.

Like most young reporters he covered courts, local councils and country shows. He already excelled at football and cricket and sports journalism came naturally to him. It was an awkward moment in 1966 when he covered the Warrnambool and District Football League’s best and fairest award. He won by four votes and then had to run back to the newspaper to file the story. His team, Dennington, won the flag that year.

Reed was related to Percy Beames, another journalist and sports all-rounder who played in three Melbourne premierships. Reed originally barracked for Melbourne, but when he moved to the city to write for The Sun he shared a Toorak flat with Peter “Percy” Jones, Carlton’s famous ruckman, and changed sides.

On retiring in 2016 he said: “If someone came up to me when I started as a 17-year-old (and said) that I would cover nearly every major sporting event on the world calendar, including nine Olympic Games, I would have jumped at the chance. I’ve got no regrets.”