The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
Football writing great Ron Scott, 1947-2018
One of the greats of Scottish football reporting has died suddenly aged 70.
Ron Scott, who spent almost 50 years with Dundee publisher DC Thomson, was admitted to Ninewells Hospital on Thursday and died on Saturday.
One of the best-connected football writers of the past half century, he maintained personal friendships with many of Scottish football’s most prominent figures, including Sir Alex Ferguson, Walter Smith, Gordon Strachan and Jim McLean.
Indeed, upon retirement in 2012 from his position as chief football writer with The Sunday Post, he was sent a personal video message of goodwill by Sir Alex.
Born in 1947, he started off as a teenager in DC Thomson’s process department in 1964.
He went on to make a name for himself as a junior sports reporter with The Sunday Post, where he remained for his entire 48-year career, also writing for sister titles, The Courier, The Weekly News and Evening Telegraph.
It was a career that saw him cover Scotland’s progress at the 1990 and 1998 World Cups in Italy and France respectively, as well as Euro 96 in England.
He also covered Aberdeen’s 1983 European Cup Winners’ Cup triumph and Dundee United’s route to the Uefa Cup final in 1987.
A warm, conscientious and gregarious character, he quickly rose to the top of the industry in a highly successful career.
Well-respected by colleagues and industry professionals, the former Morgan Academy pupil was regarded as one of the most knowledgeable Scottish football writers of his generation.
He was handed the prestigious honour of serving as president of the Scottish Football Writers’ Association, a position he held for three years between 2007 and 2010.
For much of his career, Ron wrote under the pseudonym of Bill McFarlane.
This only changed in the mid 1990s when reporters were given bylines in DC Thomson newspapers.
He continued writing about his beloved sport right up until his death, with his last piece of work being his Voice of Experience column in The Sunday Post yesterday.
He leaves behind wife Wendy, daughter Susan and brother Bruce.
Scottish journalism has lost a legend with the passing of the hugely-respected and much-loved Ron Scott.
I was privileged to call Scotty a friend as well as fellow football writer. He was a pal in the pub as well as a trusted mentor, with a knowledge of the game as wide as the Tay.
As part of the DC Thomson group, when covering games for The Courier at Dens Park, Tannadice, Hampden and elsewhere, I sat next to Ron for decades as he worked his magic for The Sunday Post.
The great thing about that is that you could sneak a look at his always comprehensive notes in case you missed something! You didn’t need to, of course, with Ron always happy to share his wisdom if you asked him. He took a keen interest in what his colleagues were doing, reminding me on more than one occasion about something I had written when I myself had forgotten.
He loved life and he especially loved having a laugh socially. A gathering with Ron present was much richer than one without him. In one sentence you would hear a tale about Jock Stein, in another a story about Jim Baxter and yet another a brilliant Jim McLean anecdote. Ron was there with these guys. He also had phone numbers the rest of us could only dream of. He knew the greats as well as any reporter working in Scottish football.
Indeed, I recall gathering for Ron’s retirement presentation in our company’s Kingsway building and waiting for what was trailed as a surprise contribution at the end.
Down went the lights and on the video screen appeared the smiling face of Sir Alex Ferguson to deliver a wonderful tribute to Scotty. Had fate not turned out as it did, he would have been one of the first in the queue wishing Fergie all the best in his current health battle.
Ron didn’t hide the fact his first and lifelong love in football was Dundee FC. He was a true dark blue and endured the hard times and enjoyed the successes just like any other fan, while always wearing his professional’s hat. As we football writers like to stress, he didn’t let that affect his job. He was ferociously fair, absolutely accurate and as full of integrity as anyone in our profession.
Ron was also a proud Dundonian, always happy to carry the good name of his home city around with him. He also led the Scottish Football Writers’ Association with distinction as president.
In the days and weeks to come, there will be several toasts made and tributes paid to Scotty. I will carry two pictures of him in my mind – the first sitting by my side in the press box and the second clinking glasses with the lads in the boozer before reminiscing about the golden days. Goodbye Scotty and thanks for everything.