William George "Bill" Deacon was "a true and honest gentleman" who demanded little, except if he was your coach, according to his granddaughter Georgia Logan.
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He was "a man who worked tirelessly for you to be your best and a man who only expected you to ever try your best," Ms Logan told a funeral service for the Junee Diesels legend and former Kiwi international.
Mr Deacon died last week at the age of 75.
St Joseph's Catholic Church in Junee was on Tuesday filled with so many mourners, a video screen was set up outside to accommodate the people who could not find seats inside.
Mr Deacon's silver fern-adorned coffin was carried by pallbearers that included his son Barry and daughter Lyandra.
New Zealand-born Mr Deacon began his senior career as a 16-year-old with Ngaruawahia Panthers in Waikato, and in 2011 was recognised as the Panthers' Player of the Century.
A New Zealand international, Mr Deacon represented the Kiwis in 14 Tests and 35 tour matches, including a World Cup, before moving to Australia in 1972.
He went on international tours and once met Queen Elizabeth.
After a stint coaching Wagga Magpies for three years, Deacon joined Junee and was captain-coach of the Diesels for four seasons from 1976-79.
The backrower, who was NZRL's player of the year in 1965, also played for Turvey Park but returned to the Diesels from 1987 to 1992.
In his eulogy, Barry shared memories of his father.
"Dad and I could sit and talk, or not talk, for hours and he would ask me about my life and travels and plans, and there would be laughs and frustrations, but contentment with it. Or he would just look at me over his glasses, contemplating a lesson which would come in very few words, possibly in gruff voice, but always with love and pride," Barry said.
"And that was Dad. There was always a quiet pride in everything he did. He saw the best in us and only ever tried to bring out that best and bring it to the surface.
"Dad was a coach at heart and, in essence, that came out in everything he did and the way he approached life. He took all the coaching and life experience he received and he distilled it and sought to pass it on to those in his charge."
Barry shared his family's sad times, including the deaths of Mr Deacon's wife Georgina in 1991 and son Daryn in 2016, and the happy times like Mr Deacon's marriage to wife Noreen in 1995 and the births of his children and grandchildren.
After the service, a traditional haka was performed before a guard of honour was formed, with some mourners wearing Diesels shirts.