Born: Echuca, Victoria, 26 October 1942

Entered eternal life: Wagga Wagga 17 September 2025

Kevin Barber was many things to many people but to all who knew him he was a good, decent and fair man who lived his life by a principled and just code.

With Kevin, you always knew where you stood.

He was fair dinkum … he was true to his word.

Kevin passed away at Wagga Wagga Base Hospital on 17 September, aged 82, after a three-month battle with a brain tumour.

He fought the good fight, right until the very end.

Like many across the Riverina, I am saddened he will not be around to chat with, listen to and learn from.

He was a sensible, practical, pragmatic man with a deep love of and devotion to his family and community.

He was described in his eulogy, delivered by grandchildren Mitchell Barber and Nikita Murphy at Sacred Heart Church, Kooringal, on Friday, as an “old school street copper”.

A guard of honour of past and present Police officers was conducted at his funeral and some good, old-style men in blue such as Michael Bourke, Steve Bradshaw, Kevin Nisbet, Bernard Nix, Kevin Wales and others were present to mourn his passing.

Kevin Barber joined the New South Wales Police Force in 1969, training at Redfern Police Academy, with Chatswood as his first station.

In 1971, he transferred to Narrandera, where he diligently and dutifully served until retiring in 2000 as a Senior Constable.

As was stated at his funeral, “After 29 years in Narrandera, there weren’t many people he didn’t know, and even fewer who didn’t know him.”

He was more than just the Policeman on the beat ... Kevin immersed himself in community activities.

He was Riverina Football League’s no-nonsense tribunal chairman for decades, judiciary chairman for Narrandera Basketball Association, a volunteer and fund-raiser with Life Education Van, president and vice-president of the Morundah Bush Picnic Races, director for a dozen years of Narrandera Ex-Servicemen’s Club, vice-president Narrandera Country Music, member of the Local Emergency Management Committees and an integral part of Narrandera Legacy.

It was in his role heading the RFL tribunal that I first met Kevin, back in the early 1980s.

We’d been firm friends ever since.

I reported on two of his most notable cases running the tribunal, as a journalist at The Daily Advertiser back in the day when the newspaper had a 2am deadline and late, breaking news made the front or back pages of the next morning’s edition.

Both matters were heard by Kevin, in 1987, a signature year for the RFL.

The first was in late August when a regular tribunal attendee opted to give Kevin and his tribunal panel colleagues Geoff Thatcher and Keith Tipping an absolute gobful after copping a six-week, season-ending suspension.

Kevin sat calmly and quietly as the tirade of abuse was delivered and then politely asked the player to retract his remarks.

No apology was forthcoming.

Kevin asked the renowned firebrand to give the panel a few moments after which he lumped another five weeks on to the sentence.

The following month produced perhaps the greatest ever RFL Grand Final, with Turvey Park coming from 11 goals down, seven minutes into the third quarter to defeat Wagga Tigers by two points in a classic.

During the tense final quarter at Narrandera Sportsground, Tigers’ defender John Copland whacked Bulldogs’ captain-coach Wayne Carroll with a big haymaker.

Not long afterwards, Copland himself was the victim of a blow he did not see coming when Turvey Park rover John Zelesco “evened things up” on the western wing between the timekeeper’s box and the grandstand.

Kevin Barber was having none of it.

He rubbed out Copland, who had discharged himself from Albury Hospital and hitchhiked to Ganmain for the tribunal, just four days after the epic Grand Final, for six games.

Copland fronted up with a bruised and bandaged face courtesy of his left cheekbone being smashed in three places and a broken nose, uttering these words which went down in country footy infamy, when asked what had provoked him.

“He’s Turvey Park and I’m Wagga. What more provocation do you need? You’d do anything to win a Grand Final.”

After the sentence was handed down, Copland said: “I hope he’s there next year. I’ll do it again next year.”

Then it was Zelesco’s turn.

The little playmaker was unable to attend as he was working at Moree and as proceedings in that particular matter began, Kevin Barber quipped: “Well at least we know the witness (Copland) will tell the truth!”

Zelesco ended up with an eight-week ban.

Kevin showed neither fear nor favour in his adjudications and players knew if they had their number taken and given a trip to the tribunal, then they had better have a good case.

His tough justice helped clean up the game at a local level which back then could get pretty wild and woolly, particularly in September when premierships were up for grabs.

For his efforts, Kevin was made a life member of the RFL.

He was also deservedly awarded life membership of Narrandera Volunteer Rescue Squad in 1997.

For a quarter of a century, Kevin was closely involved with Narrandera Volunteer Rescue Association … being president of the organisation for 21 of those years.

He responded to more than 200 major incidents – many in which people were trapped in vehicles and in touch-and-go, life-and-death situations.

Kevin was also an active volunteer at election time and I appreciated the support he gave handing out how-to-vote cards.

He was the beloved husband of Lois, who he married in 1968, cherished father of Mark (a former local Police officer) and Carolyn, and a much-loved grandfather and great-grandfather.

As his eulogy said: “He lived a life of service, strength, and love — and he leaves behind a legacy that will live on in all of us.”

Kevin Barber will be sadly missed.

MEMBER FOR RIVERINA

MICHAEL MCCORMACK