He called everyone ‘buddy’. And he made friends wherever he went. Steve ‘Coach’ McKean has been remembered as a legend of sport in Taranaki following his death on Monday after being diagnosed with cancer. He is survived by his wife, Rachel, and daughter Naomi. While best known nationally as a basketball coach, locally McKean reached thousands of young people either through his time teaching at Spotswood College or as regional director of the Taranaki Secondary Schools’ Sports Association (TSSSA), a position he held for 20 years. McKean started the TSSSA, former Sport Taranaki boss Howie Tamati, who worked with him for 26 years, said.