Kevin Bartlett (Australian rules footballer)

Bartlett was born in the inner-northern Melbourne suburb of Carlton, the only son of Charles Bartlett, Records Bartlett was also the first player in elite Australian rules football to play 400 premiership games, with only seven others achieving the feat as of 2025: five in the VFL/AFL (Hawthorn's Michael Tuck, North Melbourne's Brent Harvey, Essendon's Dustin Fletcher, Port Adelaide and Hawthorn's Shaun Burgoyne, and Collingwood's Scott Pendlebury), one in the SANFL (Glenelg's Peter Carey), and one in both leagues (Port Adelaide and Carlton's Craig Bradley; Burgoyne also played 26 SANFL games for Port Adelaide prior to his AFL career). His 403 premiership games remained an elite Australian rules football record until broken by Carey in Round 6 of the 1988 SANFL season, and an elite Victorian football record until broken by Tuck in Round 22 of the 1990 AFL season. ==Other matches and medal==

Bartlett also played 20 matches for Victoria in interstate football, 17 pre-season/night series matches (which are recognised as senior by the SANFL and WAFL but not the VFL/AFL), and four International Rules matches on the 1968 Australian Football World Tour. If these are considered, then Bartlett played a total of 444 senior career games. The VFL/AFL lists Bartlett's total as 427 career senior games, excluding his pre-season/night series matches for Richmond. Depending on the viewpoint taken, Bartlett's total was the elite Australian rules football record until it was broken by Russell Ebert in the 1984 SANFL Grand Final or Round 20 of the 1985 SANFL season: Ebert retired at the end of the 1985 SANFL season with 446 or 447 career senior games. Bartlett also played nine matches in the VFL reserves and 30 matches in the VFL Under-19s for Richmond: if these are also considered, then Bartlett played a total of 483 overall career games, including 459 career games across the VFL in seniors, reserves, Under-19s, and pre-season/night series matches. The Kevin Bartlett Medal is awarded each season to the player who finishes fifth in the Richmond Football Club's best and fairest count, with places one to four being the Jack Dyer, Jack Titus, Maurie Fleming, and Fred Swift Medals respectively. ==Playing statistics==

: ==Honours and achievements==

• Team • 5× AFL Premiership (Richmond): 1967, 1969, 1973, 1974, 1980 • 3× McClelland Trophy (Richmond): 1967, 1974, 1982 • Individual • Norm Smith Medal: 1980 • 5× Jack Dyer Medal (Richmond F.C. best and fairest): 1967, 1968, 1973, 1974, 1977 • 4× Michael Roach Medal (Richmond F.C. Leading Goalkicker): 1974, 1975, 1977, 1983 (tied with Michael Roach) • Australian Football Media Association Player of the Year Award: 1979 • Victorian Representative Honours as Captain: 1980 • Victorian Representative Honours • Represented "The Galahs" on the Australian Football World Tour: 1968 • Richmond F.C. Captain: 1979 • Richmond F.C. Team of the Century – Rover • Richmond F.C. Hall of Fame Inductee: 2002 • Richmond F.C. – Best Individual Performance of the Century • Richmond F.C. Immortal: 2004 (Conferred) • Australian Football Hall of Fame Legend: 2000 Inductee ==Coaching career==

Bartlett was the Tigers' coach from 1988 to 1991. In the 1988 match against Hawthorn, after two Richmond players were felled, Bartlett was asked for a please explain by the VFL after comments he made. Controversy surrounding his dismissal as coach left him estranged from the football club for many years. However, on 30 March 2007 he attended his first official club function since 1991. ==Administrative career==

Kevin Bartlett was a key member and public face of the AFL "Laws of the Game" or Rules Committee until 4 March 2014. He was a selector of the Australian Football Hall of Fame from its inauguration in 1996 until his resignation in 2009, and is a selector of the yearly All-Australian team. ==Media career==

Bartlett joined Channel 7 in Melbourne immediately after his playing retirement, appearing regularly on World of Sport and hosting the Junior Supporters Club. In 1984, Bartlett was crowned King of Moomba. He also wrote for the Sun News Pictorial. His media commitments were put on hold during his four-year stint as Richmond coach. He has a great all-around interest in most sports and is one of the few ex-Australian football players who has carved out a career commentating on all manner of sports. From 2004, he was a radio host on Melbourne's dedicated sports radio station, SEN – first with Hungry for Sport, a morning show playing on his nickname of "Hungry", and then with KB and the Doc in the afternoon with John "Dr Turf" Rothfield beginning in 2018. He also commentated on Saturday and Sunday matches for SEN. He previously hosted the breakfast program on Sport 927 until 2003. He commentated on cable TV for Fox Footy and was the host of the popular nostalgia show Grumpy Old Men on Fox Footy until the channel's closure at the end of the 2006 season. He also did a Richmond-centric official alternate commentary for FOX's broadcast of Richmond vs. North Melbourne in June 2014 called "Press Red for Kev" in response to the "Press Red for Ed" Collingwood-centric alternate commentaries led by Eddie McGuire. On 13 September 2008, he appeared in a Toyota Memorable Moments advertisement. The advertisement includes Bartlett recreating his seven goals from the 1980 VFL Grand Final, as well as his famous 'comb-over' hairstyle, which comedian Dave Lawson recreates by shaving his own hair on camera. Geelong's Matthew Scarlett impersonated the haircut, at his 'Mad Monday' celebrations after the 2008 Grand Final. Bartlett and fellow Richmond legend Matthew Richardson were also featured on an official 2018 recording of ''We're From Tigerland''. In 2019, Bartlett departed SEN following a dispute with management. Following this he joined the 3AW football call team as a Sunday caller. In 2024 Kevin Bartlett reunited with his good friend Dr Turf and released ‘The Bald and the Beautiful’ podcast - they have appeared on several media forums together in their media careers. Return Bartlett's refusal to return to any Richmond Football Club function, or an official club arrangement lasted from the end of 1991 until 2007. In 2007, he attended a Tommy Hafey Club Function – in support of his lifelong friend Tom Hafey and on 22 November 2007, walked into the Punt Road ground (Richmond's home ground) to launch the centenary publication Richmond F.C: A Century of League Football, which was written by his son Rhett. It was the first time KB had set foot into Punt Road since his sacking at the end of 1991. ==Recognition==

Bartlett was made a Member of the Order of Australia in 1981, and was inducted into the Australian Football Hall of Fame and Richmond Hall of Fame in 1996 and 2002, respectively; he was promoted to "legend" status in the Australian Football Hall of Fame in 2000 and to "immortal" status in the Richmond Hall of Fame in 2004. He was also named as part of Richmond's team of the century. He was inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame in 2006. On 22 March 2017, a statue of Bartlett was unveiled outside the Melbourne Cricket Ground. ==Personal life==

Bartlett married Denise Kilcullen, who was a talented runner as a youth, at St Paul's Anglican Church in Ascot Vale on 28 November 1970. They have four children: three daughters – Sharna, Cara and Breanna – and one son, Rhett. All three of the Bartlett daughters starred in track and field during their school days. Rhett is a writer, broadcaster, and historian of the Richmond Football Club, having published books about both his father and the club's history, as well as curating the "Tigerland Archive" website. ==References==