| Dick Reynolds | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 | |||
| Personal information | |||
| Full name | Richard Sylvanus Reynolds | ||
| Nickname | King Richard | ||
| Born | (1915-06-20)20 June 1915 | ||
| Died | 2 September 2002(2002-09-02) (aged 87) | ||
| Original team | Woodlands (EDFL) | ||
| Height | 179 cm (5 ft 10 in) | ||
| Weight | 82 kg (181 lb) | ||
| Position | Midfielder/Small forward | ||
| Playing career1 | |||
| Years | Club | Games (Goals) | |
| 1933–1951 | Essendon | 320 (442) | |
| Representative team honours | |||
| Years | Team | Games (Goals) | |
| Victoria | 19 (19) | ||
| Coaching career3 | |||
| Years | Club | Games (W–L–D) | |
| 1939–1960 | Essendon (VFL) | 415 (275–134–6) | |
| 1961–1963 | West Torrens (SANFL) | 58 (37–19–2) | |
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of 1951. 3 Coaching statistics correct as of 1963. | |||
| Career highlights | |||
| |||
| Sources:AFL Tables,AustralianFootball.com | |||
Richard Sylvannus Reynolds (20 June 1915 – 2 September 2002) was anAustralian rules footballer who played for theEssendon Football Club in theVictorian Football League (VFL).
Reynolds is one of four footballers to have won threeBrownlow Medals, with the others beingHaydn Bunton Sr.,Bob Skilton andIan Stewart. Revered by Essendon supporters, he was often referred to simply as "King Richard".[1]
The son of William Meader Reynolds (1886–1940)[2] and Mary James Reynolds, née Thompson (1885–1941),[3] and one of seven children, Richard Sylvannus Reynolds was born on 20 June 1915. He died on 2 September 2002. He was the brother ofTom Reynolds, the cousin of Richmond champion player and coachMax Oppy, and the grandfather ofJoel Reynolds.
Reynolds grew up supportingCarlton and sold lollies outsidePrinces Park on match days.[1]
When Reynolds won his first Brownlow Medal in1934,Fitzroy championHaydn Bunton Sr., whom Reynolds had narrowly beaten to win the award, was the first person to telegraph his congratulations, a sporting gesture that Reynolds deeply appreciated.[4]
Reynolds would normally wear the number threeguernsey throughout his playing career with Essendon, but had to wear the number four guernsey during one match of the1937 VFL season when he left his uniform at home.[5]
In July 1944 Reynolds surpassedBilly Griffith club record of 187 games.
In June 1947, it was announced that Reynolds would start writing about football for the now-defunct Melbourne newspaperThe Argus.[6]
Like many footballers, Reynolds was also a notedcricketer. He was a successful medium-fast bowler forEssendon Cricket Club but gave up the game when it started to interfere with football.[7] In January 1949, he made a return to district cricket when Essendon batsmanKen Meuleman was picked for State duty.[7]
After being re-elected yet again as player-coach by the Essendon committee in February 1949,[8] Reynolds guided the Bombers to theGrand Final againstCarlton, which they won by 73 points. Reynolds, who was playing his 299th game, described it afterwards as "the best Essendon performance he could remember."[9]
1950 was a big year for Reynolds, first he played his 300th game in round one, then later on he passed the 311 game record of Richmond championJack Dyer. Finally he led his team to victory in the1950 VFL Grand Final.
In the lead up to the1951 VFL Grand Final a raft of injuries caused the selectors to include Reynolds into the side as 19th man.[10] With the game slipping away from Essendon, Reynolds came on for the final quarter. He was instrumental in helping score two goals but Geelong won by 11 points. It was the last and game number 320 for champion. He held the record until 1971 whenTed Whitten played his 321st game.
In 1961 he handed over the coaching duties toJohn Coleman. He would move to Adelaide and for three years coach West Torrens 1961 to 1963.
Off the field, Reynolds was a shy and private man, noted for his humility about his footballing achievements.
In 2002, an Essendon panel ranked him first in theirChampions of Essendon list of the 25 greatest players ever to have played for Essendon.
Just three days before his death, after being given a standing ovation by the crowd at the announcement dinner, at which he was named the greatest Essendon player of all time, Reynolds was visibly moved and stated: "I don't deserve this honour...Bill Hutchison was the best player I ever saw."[11]
His family's link with Essendon continued when his grandsonJoel Reynolds was selected by the club in the2001 AFL draft. He made his debut in Round 3, 2002, againstBrisbane at theGabba, with Dick watching from the stands.
Reynolds' funeral was held atSt Paul's Cathedral, Melbourne, on 6 September 2002. After the service, the hearse made its way toWindy Hill, where Essendon fans had gathered to farewell their greatest player one last time.[1]
A statue in his honour was erected in 2004 at the Parade of Champions at theMelbourne Cricket Ground.[12]
In July 2017, it was announced by Reynolds' family that his three Brownlow Medals were to be auctioned by Mosgreen.[13]
