Jack Pollard
Encyclopedia
Jack Ernest Pollard OAM
(31 July 1926 – 25 May 2002) was an Australia
n sports journalist, writer and cricket
historian.
on 31 July 1926, Pollard began his journalism career in 1943 as a copy boy at Sydney's Daily Telegraph
newspaper. At the age of 18, he was called up to the Australian Army
, but a foot injury sustained during an army rugby game saw him sit out nine months at Holsworthy Barracks
. The injury may have saved Pollard's life as his assigned platoon was killed in action in New Guinea
during World War II
.
working as a sports editor for the armed forces newspaper there. He returned to Sydney briefly, then moved to England
, where he worked as a horse racing
writer for a newspaper in Sheffield
. In 1948, he started work as a correspondent for the Australian Associated Press
in London
, where he covered many major sporting events such as the 1948 Summer Olympics
, ten Wimbledon Championships
and the 1948 tour of England by Don Bradman's Australian cricket team.
, encyclopaedias on rugby union
, golf
, horse racing
and a series of popular fishing
guides. He also wrote biographies for several sports stars including tennis players Lew Hoad
and Rod Laver
, cricketer Keith Miller
and umpire Lou Rowan
, golfer Bruce Devlin
, rugby league players Ken Thornett and Johnny Raper
, and VFL
player Peter McKenna
.
He died on 25 May 2002, after suffering a stroke
upon his return to Sydney from a research trip in Melbourne.
Order of Australia
The Order of Australia is an order of chivalry established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, "for the purpose of according recognition to Australian citizens and other persons for achievement or for meritorious service"...
(31 July 1926 – 25 May 2002) was an Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n sports journalist, writer and cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
historian.
Early life
Born in Sydney, New South WalesNew South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
on 31 July 1926, Pollard began his journalism career in 1943 as a copy boy at Sydney's Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph (Australia)
The Daily Telegraph is an Australian tabloid newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, by Nationwide News, part of News Corporation.The Tele, as it is also known, was founded in 1879. From 1936 to 1972, it was owned by Frank Packer's Australian Consolidated Press. That year it was sold to...
newspaper. At the age of 18, he was called up to the Australian Army
Australian Army
The Australian Army is Australia's military land force. It is part of the Australian Defence Force along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. While the Chief of Defence commands the Australian Defence Force , the Army is commanded by the Chief of Army...
, but a foot injury sustained during an army rugby game saw him sit out nine months at Holsworthy Barracks
Holsworthy Barracks
Holsworthy Barracks is located in the outer south-western Sydney suburb of Holsworthy. It is part of the Holsworthy military reserve, which has been a training area and artillery range for the Australian Army since World War I. Following World War II it became a major base for the permanent...
. The injury may have saved Pollard's life as his assigned platoon was killed in action in New Guinea
New Guinea
New Guinea is the world's second largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 786,000 km2. Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, it lies geographically to the east of the Malay Archipelago, with which it is sometimes included as part of a greater Indo-Australian Archipelago...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
Journalism career
From 1945 to 1947, Pollard lived in post-war JapanJapan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
working as a sports editor for the armed forces newspaper there. He returned to Sydney briefly, then moved to England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, where he worked as a horse racing
Horse racing
Horse racing is an equestrian sport that has a long history. Archaeological records indicate that horse racing occurred in ancient Babylon, Syria, and Egypt. Both chariot and mounted horse racing were events in the ancient Greek Olympics by 648 BC...
writer for a newspaper in Sheffield
Sheffield
Sheffield is a city and metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire, England. Its name derives from the River Sheaf, which runs through the city. Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, and with some of its southern suburbs annexed from Derbyshire, the city has grown from its largely...
. In 1948, he started work as a correspondent for the Australian Associated Press
Australian Associated Press
Australian Associated Press is Australia's national news agency. The organisation was established in 1935 by Fairfax and The Herald and Weekly Times.AAP employs more than 175 journalists who work in bureaux in all Australian states and territories...
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, where he covered many major sporting events such as the 1948 Summer Olympics
1948 Summer Olympics
The 1948 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XIV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was held in London, England, United Kingdom. After a 12-year hiatus because of World War II, these were the first Summer Olympics since the 1936 Games in Berlin...
, ten Wimbledon Championships
The Championships, Wimbledon
The Championships, Wimbledon, or simply Wimbledon , is the oldest tennis tournament in the world, considered by many to be the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Club in Wimbledon, London since 1877. It is one of the four Grand Slam tennis tournaments, the other three Majors...
and the 1948 tour of England by Don Bradman's Australian cricket team.
Publishing career
Pollard returned to Sydney in 1956, where he worked as a sports reporter until starting his own publishing company (Jack Pollard Publishing), which specialised in books on sport and leisure topics. Pollard was a prolific writer and editor, who produced a large number of sporting reference books, including a definitive five-volume history of Australian cricketCricket in Australia
Cricket is one of the most popular sports in Australia, at international, domestic and local levels. Unlike most other sports played in Australia, cricket generates equal interest in all states of the nation. In 2007, a survey by Sweeney Sports found that 52% of the Australian public have an...
, encyclopaedias on rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
, golf
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
, horse racing
Horse racing
Horse racing is an equestrian sport that has a long history. Archaeological records indicate that horse racing occurred in ancient Babylon, Syria, and Egypt. Both chariot and mounted horse racing were events in the ancient Greek Olympics by 648 BC...
and a series of popular fishing
Fishing
Fishing is the activity of trying to catch wild fish. Fish are normally caught in the wild. Techniques for catching fish include hand gathering, spearing, netting, angling and trapping....
guides. He also wrote biographies for several sports stars including tennis players Lew Hoad
Lew Hoad
Lewis Alan Hoad was a champion tennis player....
and Rod Laver
Rod Laver
Rodney George "Rod" Laver MBE is an Australian former tennis player who holds the record for titles won in career, and was the World No. 1 player for seven consecutive years, from 1964 to 1970...
, cricketer Keith Miller
Keith Miller
Keith Ross Miller MBE was an Australian Test cricketer and a Royal Australian Air Force pilot during World War II. Miller is widely regarded as Australia's greatest ever all-rounder. Because of his ability, irreverent manner and good looks he was a crowd favourite...
and umpire Lou Rowan
Lou Rowan
Louis Patrick “Lou” Rowan , was an Australian Test cricket match umpire.He umpired 25 Test matches between 1963 and 1971. His first match was between Australian and England at Sydney on 11 January to 15 January 1963, when Alan Davidson took 9/79, and Bobby Simpson took 5/57 and made 91 and 36 not...
, golfer Bruce Devlin
Bruce Devlin
Bruce William Devlin is an Australian professional golfer, sportscaster and golf course designer.Devlin was born in Armidale, Australia. He turned pro in 1961 and joined the PGA Tour in 1962 after an amateur career in Australia which included a win at the Australian Amateur in 1959...
, rugby league players Ken Thornett and Johnny Raper
Johnny Raper
John Raper, MBE is an Australian former rugby league footballer and coach. He was a lock forward for the Australia national team. He had a record 33 test caps between 1959 and 1968 and played in 6 World Cup games between 1960 to 1968...
, and VFL
Australian Football League
The Australian Football League is both the governing body and the major professional competition in the sport of Australian rules football...
player Peter McKenna
Peter McKenna
Peter McKenna is a former Australian rules footballer, who played 180 games and kicked 838 goals with the Collingwood Football Club between 1965 and 1975, where he spent the majority of his career...
.
Retirement
Pollard retired from publishing in 1981 to concentrate on writing.He died on 25 May 2002, after suffering a stroke
Stroke
A stroke, previously known medically as a cerebrovascular accident , is the rapidly developing loss of brain function due to disturbance in the blood supply to the brain. This can be due to ischemia caused by blockage , or a hemorrhage...
upon his return to Sydney from a research trip in Melbourne.
Honours
- 12 December 1990: General member of the Sport Australia Hall of Fame
- 8 June 1992: Medal of the Order of AustraliaOrder of AustraliaThe Order of Australia is an order of chivalry established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, "for the purpose of according recognition to Australian citizens and other persons for achievement or for meritorious service"...
for service to sports journalism and sporting history
External links
- Author biography: Jack Pollard, HarperCollinsHarperCollinsHarperCollins is a publishing company owned by News Corporation. It is the combination of the publishers William Collins, Sons and Co Ltd, a British company, and Harper & Row, an American company, itself the result of an earlier merger of Harper & Brothers and Row, Peterson & Company. The worldwide...
- Titles by Jack Pollard, National Library of AustraliaNational Library of AustraliaThe National Library of Australia is the largest reference library of Australia, responsible under the terms of the National Library Act for "maintaining and developing a national collection of library material, including a comprehensive collection of library material relating to Australia and the...