{"id":517474,"date":"2026-03-04T05:39:27","date_gmt":"2026-03-04T05:39:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/517474\/"},"modified":"2026-03-04T05:39:27","modified_gmt":"2026-03-04T05:39:27","slug":"dennis-cometti-australian-broadcasting-legend-passes-away-aged-76","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/517474\/","title":{"rendered":"Dennis Cometti: Australian broadcasting legend passes away aged 76"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Australian sporting community is mourning Dennis Cometti, with the broadcasting legend passing away aged 76.<\/p>\n

Renowned as arguably Australian football\u2019s pre-eminent caller, Cometti was the voice of the AFL for three decades, spearheading Seven\u2019s coverage until his retirement at the end of 2016.<\/p>\n

The man who coined the phrase \u2018centimetre perfect\u2019 among many other brilliant one-liners was inducted into the Australian Football Hall of Fame in 2020.<\/p>\n

\"ComettiCamera IconCometti is an icon of Australian sport. Credit: Jackson Flindell\/The West Australian<\/p>\n

Cometti\u2019s distinctive voice formed the soundtrack for many iconic moments in Australian sport.<\/p>\n

He was behind the microphone for West Coast\u2019s maiden premiership triumph in 1992, notable for describing Peter Wilson\u2019s \u201clike a cork in the ocean\u201d goal kicked over his head. He called Kieren Perkins\u2019 win from Lane 8 at the 1996 Atlanta Games among three Olympics, and also commentated Test cricket, basketball and WAFL in his distinguished career.<\/p>\n

\"ComettiCamera IconCometti in his younger days. Credit: Liam Croy\/The West Australian<\/p>\n

Cometti was honoured with the naming of the media centre at Optus Stadium in his honour when the venue opened in 2018, and was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia the following year.<\/p>\n

\"DennisCamera IconDennis Cometti after his AO honour in 2019. Credit: Michael Wilson\/The West Australian<\/p>\n

Born in Geraldton in 1949, Cometti rose through junior football ranks to play 40 WAFL games for West Perth before becoming coach of the club in 1982.<\/p>\n

\"ComettiCamera IconCometti as West Perth coach in 1982. Credit: The West Australian<\/p>\n

But it would be broadcast where he would make his greatest mark, with a 13-year career with the ABC followed by joining the Seven Network in 1986 to coincide with West Coast\u2019s entry into the then-VFL the following year.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Cometti spent five seasons at Nine from 2002-06 before returning to Seven when the network reclaimed the AFL broadcasting rights.<\/p>\n

\"DennisCamera IconDennis Cometti and Bruce McAvaney. Credit: Supplied<\/p>\n

After finishing his TV calling career in 2016, alongside long-time on-air partner Bruce McAvaney for that year\u2019s grand final, Cometti continued to call games locally for radio station Triple M until 2021.<\/p>\n

Cometti\u2019s voice will long live on in the hearts and minds of sports fans, including some of the most iconic AFL moments of the modern era.<\/p>\n

In his final call for Seven in 2016, Cometti described Tom Boyd\u2019s pivotal long-range goal to set the Western Bulldogs on a path to victory: \u201cHow will it bounce? The stadium holds its breath. It\u2019s a goal. And the western suburbs erupt.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

He quipped that Heath Shaw \u201ccame up behind him like a librarian\u201d when he produced a goalsquare smother on Nick Riewoldt in the 2010 grand final replay, while he described Cyril Rioli\u2019s chase of fellow speedster Lewis Jetta in the 2012 decider as \u201ca main event in any stadium in the world\u201d.<\/p>\n

\"BruceCamera IconBruce McAvaney and Dennis Cometti. Credit: Supplied\/Supplied<\/p>\n

Outgoing AFL Commission chair Richard Goyder was among many to pay tribute to Cometti upon news of his death breaking on Wednesday morning.<\/p>\n

\u201cDennis was a voice for our game for more than 50 years, and he captured the moment perfectly every time and made it fun along the way,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\"ComettiCamera IconCometti behind the mic in his early broadcast days. Credit: WA News<\/p>\n

\u201cFrom his start at the ABC, with a significant career there too as a high-quality cricket caller for Test matches in the 1970s, footy was the beneficiary for so long with his incredible skills. He was a master of calling everything \u2013 cricket, the Olympics, swimming and anything he turned his hand too \u2013 but footy was lucky to have him the longest for his greatest work.\u201d<\/p>\n

AFL chief executive Andrew Dillon said Cometti\u2019s work would live on forever.<\/p>\n

\u201cEvery fan of a certain age has their own catchphrase that jumps straight to the tongue, whether it\u2019s \u2019cork in the ocean\u2019, \u2018centimetre perfect\u2019 or Buddy sprinting down the wing at the MCG,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\"ComettiCamera IconCometti in 2019. Credit: Danella Bevis\/The West Australian<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are privileged that so much of his greatest work calling our biggest games is easily available for all fans, and thank you Dennis for illuminating footy and your contribution across the country to bring that excitement into homes.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dockers chief executive Simon Garlick labelled Cometti \u201ca true WA legend of the game\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cHis iconic voice was the soundtrack of so many of our winters and his skill and dedication to his craft will never be forgotten,\u201d Garlick said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWith countless memorable one-liners and exceptional timing and accuracy in his calls, Dennis was a fan favourite during his commentary days and will be remembered with great fondness.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"DennisCamera IconDennis Cometti at the desk. Credit: Unknown\/Supplied<\/p>\n

WA Premier Roger Cook described Cometti as an \u201cicon\u201d of Australian sport.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe has called footy for as long as I can remember, and I even remember watching him on a black-and-white telly,\u201d Cook said.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo he\u2019s been part of all our lives. He is responsible for coining some of the most iconic phrases in football commentary, and he\u2019ll be dearly missed. Our thoughts and prayers and condolences go out to him and all his family.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"ComettiCamera IconCometti in 2021. Credit: John Koh\/The West Australian<\/p>\n

West Perth president Jimmy Caffieri said Cometti\u2019s memory \u201cwill forever live on in the hearts of all who knew him.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe was more than just a footballer\u2014he was a mentor, a leader, and a dear friend to many. His professionalism and dedication to West Perth will be sorely missed, and he will always be remembered as a cherished member of the West Perth family.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"DennisCamera IconDennis Cometti in his playing days for West Perth. Credit: Unknown\/WA News<\/p>\n

The Perth Wildcats described Cometti – a long-time No.1 ticket holder – as \u201ca legendary voice of Australian sport and a cherished part of our club and community.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDennis proudly served as the Wildcats\u2019 long-time No.1 ticket holder and remained a passionate supporter of the team and the Red Army for many years.\u201d the club said in a statement.\u201cHis connection to the club and the broader contribution he made to Australian sport will always be remembered and our thoughts are with his family and friends at this difficult time.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"ComettiCamera IconCometti won\u2019t soon be forgotten. Credit: Colin Murty\/News Corp Australia<\/p>\n

Seven last month announced Cometti\u2019s extraordinary career will be celebrated in a documentary called Centimetre Perfect, scheduled to air later this year.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Australian sporting community is mourning Dennis Cometti, with the broadcasting legend passing away aged 76. Renowned as…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":517475,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[638,43,44,588,41,39,42,40],"class_list":["post-517474","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-headlines","tag-afl","tag-headlines","tag-news","tag-sport","tag-top-news","tag-top-stories","tag-topnews","tag-topstories"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/517474","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=517474"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/517474\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/517475"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=517474"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=517474"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=517474"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}