- Ray Warren says giving up his commentary work has been difficult
- Iconic broadcaster was the voice of footy for more than five decades
Revered commentator Ray ‘Rabbits’ Warren has opened up about his life since retirement, revealing the struggles that have made him realise stepping away from the microphone is easier said than done.
Known as ‘The Voice of Rugby League’, Warren’s last match as a commentator was the 2021 NRL grand final between Penrith and Souths.
Warren retired in 2022, ending a career in commentary that lasted 55 years.
The veteran broadcaster now says that he has struggled to make the adjustment to life outside the commentary box.
‘I’m not handling that (retirement) all that well, to be honest’, he told radio 2GB.
‘Leaving what I was doing was like cutting off my arm. It was a playground. I don’t think I ever went to work.
Ray Warren (pictured) has admitted stepping away from the microphone is easier said than done as he owned up to struggling in retirement
‘I went to play, but I don’t think I ever got Mondayitis, but it’s gone now.
‘I was 78 when I gave it away, so I didn’t have much longer to go anyway.’
From a young age, Warren was passionate about commentating, even practising by calling marble races by himself.
He began his professional career at 23 in regional NSW before moving to Sydney in 1969 and starting in television in 1974.
Throughout his career, he worked for 2LF in Young, 2GB radio, Network 10, and Nine’s Wide World of Sports.
Warren said he’s flattered when people tell him how important his work has been over the years – and also offered a glimmer of hope to those who want him to continue commentating.
‘I don’t think they realise I was 78 when I gave it away and I didn’t want to undo what good I might have done, that’s the long and the short of it,’ he said.
‘But now I sit down in the lounge room and think I might be able to do a call from home.
Warren called time on a 55-year career behind the microphone after lending his voice to countless landmark moments in the history of Australian sport
‘Rabbits’ (pictured with wife Cher) is a member of the NRL’s Hall of Fame
‘It was a fabulous time in life for me, it went 55 years.’
In 2019, Warren was inducted into the National Rugby League Hall of Fame for his ongoing service to the sport.
Last year, he hosed down speculation he could come out of retirement to call what would have been his 100th State of Origin game.
Warren also covered swimming, tennis and horse racing in his decorated career, winning legions of sports fans along the way.