Kelly Beech was Wairarapa-Bush?s number one fan

A one-man Barmy Army.
That pretty much sums up Kelly Beech, who passed away last week.
Wairarapa-Bush rugby has been fortunate to have numerous fanatical supporters over the years but Kelly from Pahiatua would have to be right at the top of the list.
Indeed he was more than a supporter, he was an institution.
Rules at most rugby grounds around the country state that noone apart from the tough judges should be close to the field of play.
Well, try telling Kelly Beech that.
It didn't seem to matter whether his beloved Wairarapa-Bush was playing at Masterton, Wellington, Auckland, Christchurch or wherever, Kelly could be seen prowling the sidelines.
And, amazingly, match officials seldom even questioned him being there.
Often though you wondered just how much of the rugby Kelly actually saw.
Most of the time he seemed to have his back to the action as he exhorted the crowd to get behind his team.
He also enjoyed having regular chats with us mere mortals standing behind the fences or sitting in the front rows of the grandstand.
Chats which always centred around how well "the boys" were playing, even if the scoreboard indicated otherwise.
To Kelly Wairarapa-Bush never played badly, it was just that the opposition occasionally played better??.. and very occasionally at that!
It was one of the special moments in Wairarapa-Bush rugby history which provided a classic illustration of the respect given Kelly Beech by players and management.
Flying to Invercargill in 1981 for the promotion-relegation match with Southland to decide whether Wairarapa-Bush would be playing at national first division level the following season it was noticed that Kelly was not on board..
It seemed unbelievable he would miss such an important game - any game for that matter- and there was widespread concern that he must have been struck down by ill health.
We should have known better.
Who was the first person at Invercargill airport to greet the team on their arrival but Kelly Beech, resplendent as usual in collar and tie and with a half-empty beer bottle in his hand. He had travelled south a day early and was already well into the swing of things.
And the next day he was roaming up and down the sidelines of Rugby Park, as Wairarapa-Bush came from behind to beat Southland and start an era which saw them remain for five years in the country's top domestic competition.
The scenes in the Wairarapa-Bush dressing room at the game's completion will forever remain in the memory of those of us lucky enough to be there, and right at the forefront of them was Kelly Beech, shaking hands with all the players and coach Lochore and ensuring that empty glasses weren't that way for long.
And, as was Kelly's wont, ensuring that when the inevitable cameras arrived and pictures were being taken that he positioned himself in such a way to guarantee he featured in many of them.
Kelly Beech was 85 when he passed away at Palmerston North Hospital last
Wednesday.
He will be missed.