One of Australia’s greatest sports commentators, Dennis Cometti, has been honoured at a state memorial service.

The legendary broadcaster was farewelled at a touching celebration with family, friends, dignitaries, the AFL community and members of the public at Optus Stadium on Monday.

Cometti passed away on March 3, aged 76, after suffering a long illness with Alzheimer’s disease.

He was loved by many for his AFL commentary and iconic one-liners that earnt him the reputation as the AFL’s “voice of football.”

His effortless delivery and unrivalled razor-sharp wit produced many memorable phrases, including: “Centimetre perfect,” “He crept up behind him like a librarian — he never heard him coming,” and “Like a cork in the ocean over his head.”

The service was hosted by sports broadcaster Mark Readings and was attended by Governor Chris Dawson, Premier Roger Cook, Opposition Leader Basil Zemplias and fellow broadcasters Bruce McAvaney and Eddie McGuire.

“His talents were such that when the broadcast rights changed from Seven to Nine and then back to Seven, he was assured of a leading role irrespective of which network held the rights,” Mr Readings said.

Former Fremantle Docker captains Peter Bell and Matthew Pavlich and West Coast Chief Executive Officer Don Pyke and Trevor Nisbett were also in attendance.

Premier Cook remembered Cometti as one of the greatest orators in Australian history.

“The sounds of Dennis Cometti invokes a sense of comfort and familiarity that we all share,” he said.

“It’s attached to some of our best memories our greatest sporting moments over five decades of broadcasting.

“He enriched the lives of millions of Australians, no more so than his family.”

Mr Cook said Cometti’s colleagues’ observations of him were remarkably consistent.

“His wit was unrivalled, his memory prodigious, but it was his warmth, that trademark gentleness, that resonated with everyone he encountered, and that core trait flowed through his commentary style as well,” Mr Cook said.

“The gentle cheekiness, the sixth sense for a perfect one liner, and the way that he rarely reached a shouting volume in the commentary box.

“He didn’t need to his timing, judgment and execution was so sound that they simply commanded attention on their own, he left us all in awe.”

Former West Perth Football Club captain Les Fong said he formed a strong relationship with Cometti when he was coach.

“Those of us close to the game knew just how much football knowledge and experience he brought with him,” he said.

“What stood out most about Dennis as a coach was his understanding of the game, and more importantly, of people he had played at the highest level.

“He understood what players needed and what they went through. He had empathy, wisdom and ability to earn respect while always showing it in return.

“He was loyal to West Perth. He was proud of the club. He loved the red and the blue, and above all, is simply a champion bloke on and off the field.

“Then there was that voice, smooth, unmistakeable and iconic.

“Dennis Cometti, you and your voice will sadly be missed by one and all. Rest in peace.”

Mr Zemplias shared many touching moments with the commentating great and recalled a time when Cometti met Olympic swimming gold medallist Kieran Perkins.

“Of all of the Australian triumphs I think Perkins win from lane eight has a special place in Australian folklore,” he said.

“I once asked Dennis about the Perkins call, did he get the opportunity to meet with the great Kieran Perkins and talk about that moment? And yes, he had.

“He said to me, ‘Well Bazz I met Kieran. I reached out my hand. I shook it firmly. I looked him in the eye and said, Kieran, I couldn’t have done it without you.’

“But as brilliant as he was behind the microphone and in front of the camera, he was even better in real life, Dennis was an absolute gentleman, a warm, caring, compassionate, yes, quirky, but a warm, caring, compassionate human being, and his greatest gift was his ability to uplift everybody.”

Commentating partner Bruce McAvaney said Cometti had an ability to rise in sync with an AFL match as it reached that crucial point.

“Dennis’ voice quickening, his body was in rhythm with the action, the tone, the accuracy, the cadence,” he said.

“Sorry, Dennis, it was centimetre perfect. It really was, and here I was standing alongside of him.

“His passing has had a profound effect on me.”

Mr McAveney said he and Cometti shared a journey and it was singularly the most extraordinary partnership he had shared with anyone in his broadcasting career.

“Right until the end, he had my back. I hope he knows I had his as well. We were colleagues, we became lifelong friends,” he said.

“We’ve said it before, he made footballers famous.

“We pride ourselves here in Australia at the quality of our sports broadcasters. Dennis unquestionably one of our finest and without doubt, the benchmark when it comes to Australian Rules Football.”

Cometti was born in Geraldton in 1949 with football in his blood from the start. He played 38 games and kicked 70 goals

in the WAFL for West Perth before returning to coach the club in 1982.

But it was in the commentary box where Cometti truly became a household name.

Over a career spanning five decades, Cometti called some of the nation’s most loved sporting events including Test cricket, three Olympic Games in 1992, 1996 and 2000, and countless AFL matches.

But it was his call of the West Coast Eagles’ maiden premiership in 1992 that cemented his place in WA sporting folklore.

In 2016, he retired from television commentary after a 30 year stint with Channel 7.

The broadcasting great continued calling games on radio until 2021, with the Grand Final at Optus Stadium marking his very last AFL commentary.

The Optus Stadium Media Centre bears his name, he won the Lifetime Achievement Award at the Australian Sports Commission Media Awards in 2018 and in 2019, he was awarded a Member of the Order of Australia for significant service to broadcast media.

Cometti was also inducted into the Football Australia Hall of Fame in 2020 and the WA Football Hall of Fame in 2021.