A well-known sports journalist has retired after spending nearly 50 years with a regional publisher.

Sunday Post journalist Ron Scott, left, started his career with DC Thomson in 1964 as an apprentice in the process department in Dundee, which was involved with photographs and art work for the newspapers.

But his keen interest in football soon led to him carving out a name for himself as a junior sports reporter for The Sunday Post and his first trial match report was a game between Arbroath and Shrewsbury Town in 1968.

The following year, Ron became a full-time sports journalist for The Sunday Post, The Courier, The Weekly News and the Evening Telegraph.

Ron has now retired after 48 years with DC Thomson, although he will still write columns and match reports for the Sunday title, and was sent a dedication by Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson.

Post editor Donald Martin said: “Ron is hugely respected by his peers in journalism, and throughout the game, in Scottish football and beyond. He has built trust over many years by his honesty, accuracy and fairness.

“Although Ron has now officially retired, it won’t be the last we will hear from him. He’ll still be writing a weekly column and doing match reports in The Sunday Post.

“I am sure Ron will have a happy and long retirement. His big and warm personality will be sorely missed around the office but I look forward to still reading all about his adventures in his column every week.”

Ron previously wrote under the pseudonym of Bill MacFarlane, with this only changing around 10 years ago when reporters were given bylines in DC Thomson newspapers.