Last night’s third annual Southern Football Netball League Hall of Fame Event was a wonderful celebration of the rich history of football in Melbourne’s south east and of the individuals that have ensured its success and prosperity.
More than 80 people attended the auspicious cocktail function at the Woodlands Golf Club to recognise the tremendous achievements of three of community football’s greatest contributors, Neil Kellett, Emrys Lloyd-Griffiths and Daryl Pitman.
WATCH/READ: The Neil Kellett Story
WATCH/READ: The Emrys Lloyd-Griffiths Story
WATCH/READ: The Daryl Pitman Story
The trio joins the 28 current inductees since the Hall of Fame’s establishment in 2015.
SFNL CEO David Cannizzo said the Hall of Fame function was a wonderfully enjoyable evening and thanked each of the inductees for the enormous service they have given to community football.
“Last night’s function again provided such a special opportunity to acknowledge and celebrate some amazing individual achievements in the SFNL and its forerunner leagues,” Mr Cannizzo.
“It was so admirable that each inductee acknowledged their support and teams around them throughout their journeys in community sport. But it is evident that without the leadership of these three men, the evolution of the clubs, initiatives and leagues could not have occurred, and it is their contributions that have seen the SFNL develop in to its current form today.
“On behalf of the SFNL board, I extend our earnest congratulations to the Hall of Fame inductees, and Distinguished Service and Outstanding Achievement award recipients, and also to their family and loved ones for their support along their journeys in community sport.”
In addition to the three Hall of Fame inductions, the SFNL took the opportunity on the night to recognise other long-serving club volunteers with subsidiary awards.
Long-time Heatherton committeeman Matthew Buckley and Moorabbin Kangaroos stalwarts Geoffrey Burke and Barbara Duncan were honoured with Outstanding Achievement awards for contributions to their respective clubs, while Heatherton’s Damien Cody, Moorabbin’ Peter Duncan and South Yarra pair Owen Pearse and Stephen Saillard each took home Distinguished Service awards.
The night also served as a reunion for the South East Suburban Football League, one of the precursor competitions to the current SFNL, with plenty of memorabilia on display from the halcyon days of the old SESFL.
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2017 SFNL Hall of Fame Inductee Neil Kellett[/caption]
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2017 SFNL Hall of Fame Inductee Emrys Lloyd-Griffiths[/caption]
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2017 SFNL Hall of Fame Inductee Daryl Pitman[/caption]
