2024 FSG Gold Medal Awards Dinner Event

Players, coaches, officials as well as special guests attended what was an amazing evening which acknowledged the achievements from the Football St George 2024 season held at Conca D’oro, Riverwood on Friday, 20 September 2024.

It was a fantastic night as over 300 guests celebrated what was a challenging but rewarding season for the sport in the St George Region in 2024.

There were a number of special guests that attended the Football St George Gold Medal Dinner which included The Hon. David Coleman MP (Member of Banks), Gilbert Lorquet (Chairperson of Football NSW), Debbie Chapman (Director of Football NSW), and Football St George Life Members John Hedison, Jacky Finlay-Jones and Peter Sarikkakis.

The ABC’s Daniel Garb was MC for the evening and began the night with an Acknowledgement of Country followed by the formalities before continuing with the presentation of the 2024 Football St George awards.

Football St George Chairperson Irene Hatzipetros was jubilant about the night,

“It was an incredible night at the 2024 Football St George Gold Medal Awards event, where we celebrated the remarkable achievements of our players, coaches, referees, and volunteers, who have all contributed to an outstanding season.

As we mark 100 years of Football St George, the event was not only about honouring individual excellence but also about recognising the strength and unity of our entire football community.

A special congratulations to all our clubs for their dedication throughout the season, and to Leanne Smith from Peakhurst United FC, our 2024 Gold Medal Award winner, for her outstanding contribution.

Together, we reflect on our rich history while embracing the exciting future ahead for our sport, with growth, inclusivity, and community at the heart of everything we do.”

The evening of awards commenced with the 2024 Premiers followed by the Club Volunteer Awards which recognises the immense and vital contribution Club Volunteers make to the experience of everyone involved in football across the region.

The Referee Awards for the 2024 season included the Referee Volunteer of the Year, Junior Female Referee of the Year, Junior Male Referee of the Year and both Senior Female/Male Referees of the Year. Football St George would once again like to acknowledge and thank the St George Football Referees Association and all the Referees that were involved in the 2024 season.

It was a great privilege to have a few of the players from the Football St George Powerchair teams in attendance and guests were fortunate to hear from captain of the first-grade team and coach of the reserves, Abdullah Karim who detailed his career so far and looked back at the 2024 season.

Next on the agenda was the 2024 Football St George Premier League Golden Boot Awards which were awarded to Mohamed Farhat (Arncliffe Aurora FC) and Ria Farag (Oatley FC)

Following the Golden Boot Awards, Football St George awarded the 2024 Football St George Premier League Players of the Year to Bilal Chaine (Arncliffe Aurora FC) and Zainab Jaber (Banksia Tigers FC) in recognition of the most influential male and female player in the Premier League competition.

Other awards that were announced on the night included the following with two newly named shields being presented in the K.Fyfe Shield and S.Mallios Shield:

K.Fyfe Shield (Junior Competition Fair Play Award) awarded to Oatley FC in recognition of the Junior Club with 5 or more competition teams in the U12 to U18 age grades and who recorded the least amount of yellow and red cards during the season.
S. Moses Sheild awarded to Bexley North FC U13 A Girls Team in recognition of the most outstanding A Grade team that won a Minor Premiership.
A. Tanner Sheild awarded to Arncliffe Aurora FC in recognition of the Premier League Men Division 1 squad with the highest aggregate points across its First and Reserve Grade teams.
W. Dobson Sheild awarded to Hurstville City Minotaurs FC in recognition of the Club with 4 to 9 competition teams and who accumulated the highest average competition points across those teams.
S.Mallios Shield (Club Championship) which was awarded to Forest Rangers FC in recognition of the Club with 10 or more competition teams and who accumulated the highest average competition points across those teams.

To conclude the night was the awarding of the illustrious Football St George Gold Medal Award which was introduced 10 years ago when the then Association Executive Committee led by John Hedison and the Late Sok Mallios, introduced the Gold Medal in recognition of an outstanding contribution over and above what would normally be expected of a person in the position they hold or have held, and is a contribution to the code which merits the highest possible acknowledgement.

The Gold Medal Award recipient epitomises the values not only of the club but that of football, volunteering and giving back to the community. Following a review of a number of worthy nominations for the Gold Medal Award by the Football St George Board, the Football St George Chair Ms Irene Hatzipetros, was delighted to announce Leanne Smith (Peakhurst United FC) as the 2024 Gold Medal Award winner.

Football St George would once again like to congratulate Leanne and all the award recipients from the 2024 Season, and we look forward to a big year for the sport in 2025.