Harley Reid, right, in action last week. Credit: Getty Images
Reid’s father, Mark, played 362 games for Tongala and was known for his mercurial marking ability, while his mother, Vanessa, was a prominent netballer for the club.
“He’s something out of the box, for sure,” Cox said of Reid. “His parents were both great sportspeople back in their day, so the genes are there, and his skills even as an under-12 and under-14 footballer were something special.
“Harley’s never about himself and just goes about his job. He’ll offer to do whatever you need and doesn’t need to be asked. He will work hard and get the best out of himself wherever he goes – and will be loyal.”
Reid is being likened to Brownlow medallist Dustin Martin for his fend-off skills, which the teenager put into action in a practice game for Tongala against Goulburn Valley club Kyabram this year. In one passage of play, five Kyabram rivals tried to tackle him and he stiff-armed each one before delivering a perfect pass to a teammate inside 50, Cox said. Cox played alongside Brisbane Lions great Jonathan Brown at South Warrnambool when the latter was only 16 and sees similarities in how Reid stepped seamlessly into senior football.
“They’re different types of players, but ‘Browny’ oozed confidence and was playing at centre-half-back and centre-half-forward on grown men and beating them no ends – similar to Harley,” he said.
“Harley’s really grown into a man and his core strength is incredible. He didn’t start growing until this last 12 months, but he’s nearly 190 centimetres now.”
Another memorable Reid story from his Tongala exploits was him kicking 131 goals as a midfielder in the under-14s, including 20 in one match against Congupna.
He brought up his ton in the return bout with the same club, before swapping jumpers to join the opposition, with players from both clubs chairing him off the ground afterwards.
Reid will be the star attraction at this year’s AFL Under-18 Championships for Victoria Country, and is averaging 22 disposals, 15 contested possessions, five clearances and almost two goals for the Pioneers in 2023.
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Bendigo’s talent manager Rick Coburn said they were doing their best to protect Reid from the relentless hype.
“He’s a terrific kid who is playing good footy, and we love having him in our program,” Coburn said. “He’s an outstanding young man, on and off the field.”
Reid is on light duties this week after copping consecutive, albeit accidental, knees to the head in Saturday’s game against Carlton’s VFL team, an incident that ended his day prematurely with 13 disposals.
The AFL’s concussion protocol means the 18-year-old cannot play again for 12 days, but Coburn said the Pioneers’ own policy was 14 days, and that they would not rush him back.