William Joseph Reedy

In the early 1900s Bill Reedy, a hooker and front row player in the old 2-3-2 scrum formation, had a career in top New Zealand rugby which was a forerunner of that which a modern hooker, Tane Norton, had in the 1970s.

Like Norton, Reedy played in club rugby for many years before gaining any representative honours and like Norton most of his rugby was in smaller unions and it was not until he moved to a major union that he won recognition.

Reedy played all his early rugby for the White Star club in Buller and while he never made the representative side he must have enjoyed numerous honours and successes with the club. For in the time Reedy was with White Star it won the Buller championship in 1904-06.

At the age of 27 Reedy moved to Wellington to work in the rail workshops in the Hutt Valley, where he linked up with the then burgeoning Petone club. He was in the side which in 1907 won the Wellington championship and that year began a lengthy stint in the Wellington representative team which did not end until 1915 by which time he was well into his mid 30s and had made 24 appearances. To carry the comparison further Norton was also around 35 when he ended his career in 1977.

Reedy made the North Island side in 1908 and again in 1909. He made the interisland match in 1908 having made an impact with the Wellington side which had accounted for the Anglo-Welsh tourists 19-13. From there Reedy won selection in the All Black side for the second test at Athletic Park which resulted in a 3-all draw.

The New Zealand side was much criticised for this performance, but Reedy was one of those retained for the third test at Eden Park, which was comfortably won 29-0. He apparently contributed with full effect to a dominant pack effort but despite that was never again an All Black.

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