Life Members
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James Anderson
Serving as secretary of the Bendigo Amateur Soccer League between 1988 and 1993, James Anderson was awarded Life Membership by that organisation in 1987, before becoming a Life Member of Football Federation Victoria in 2010.
Mate Antolos
Born in 1936, Mate Antolos was the President of Croydon City during its most successful period, and was responsible for the club's move to its current home at Dorset Recreation Reserve. He served as Vice President of the Victorian Soccer Federation between 1992 and 1996 and was honoured as a Life Member in 2001. Antolos passed away in 2012.
George Apostolou
An accomplished referee, George Apostolou featured regularly in the Victorian State League between 1981 and 1984. A qualified referee inspector, he was a member of the Victorian branch of the Australian Soccer Referees Association (1985-1986) and the Investigation and Disciplinary Committee (1989-1991). He resumed the role of Secretary with Soccer Referees Victoria (1997-1998) where he was recognised with the honour of Life Membership.
Jimmy Armstrong
A prolific forward throughout his career, Jimmy Armstrong netted more league goals (152) than any other player during the Victorian State League era. Born in Scotland in 1943, he arrived in Melbourne aged 23, and with Hakoah, South Melbourne Hellas and Juventus, won the Golden Boot on three occasions along with the Bill Fleming Medal in 1974. He helped steer South Melbourne Hellas (89 goals) to three championships in the 1970's and earned several caps with Victoria and Australia. A Director of Coaching at both Juventus and South Melbourne Hellas, he also sat on the Board and was secretary of the latter club. He served on sub-committees with the Victorian Soccer Federation and was inducted into the Football Australia Hall of Fame in 1999 and the Football Victoria Hall of Fame in 2016. He was honoured with Life Membership by Football Federation Victoria in 2015.
Vince Ballerini
Identifying a need for a Saturday morning competition to assist with junior development in the region, the Cobram Junior Soccer Association (CJSA) was established in 1984 by Vince Ballerini. He served as the organisation's formative president in its first decade as the association expanded its reach to nearby Finley, Numurkah and Tocumwal. As President of the North Eastern Soccer League for well over a decade, his influence in the region was recognised by the Victorian Soccer Federation in 1994, where he was awarded Life Membership . With the existence of the CJSA under threat, he reprised the president's role for two years in 2013-2014 and again in 2018, at the age of 77.
Chris Bambridge
Born in 1947, Chris Bambridge arrived in Melbourne from England in 1974 and was appointed to the National Soccer League referee panel in 1977, where he officiated in four NSL grand finals before his retirement in 1991. Awarded a FIFA badge in 1981, he gained selection to the panel of linesmen for the World Youth Cup in Australia and Mexico in 1983. Bambridge refereed the final of the 1985 World Youth Cup in China and officiated in the 1986 FIFA World Cup finals and the 1988 Olympic Games, becoming the only Australian referee to have taken part in both tournaments. Twice named Australian Referee of the Year, he became the President of Soccer Referees Victoria before assuming the role of Referees Manager at the Victorian Soccer Federation until his retirement in 2015. Bambridge is currently a member of the Football Victoria Historical Committee.
Melissa Barbieri
Beginning her playing career as a midfielder, it was a switch to goalkeeper where Melissa Barbieri made waves as an international, being named in her first Matildas squad a year later in 2001. A decade-long veteran of Victoria Vision, Barbieri was named in the inaugural Melbourne Victory squad, and has appeared with Newcastle Jets, Adelaide United and Melbourne City, where she continues to play to this day. 86 caps for Australia (the most by a Victorian at the time) were signposted by four World Cup appearances and an Asian Cup triumph in 2010. Barbieri was inducted into the Football Victoria Hall of Fame in 2015 and continues to play in the A-League Women's competition with Melbourne City.
John Barclay
Born in Scotland in 1927, John Barclay gained extensive administration experience in Victoria from as early as 1963. He served as a Board member and Deputy Chairman of the Victorian Soccer Federation for a number of years across three decades and oversaw significant restructure as Chairman of the Metropolitan League Management Committee (1966-1969). He made his first tour as Australia's team manager to Vietnam and south-east Asia in 1967 and reprised that role during the FIFA World Cup qualification campaign in 1969. He was the Socceroos team manager at the 1974 World Cup, and was a Life Member of the VSF (honoured in 1970) and Australian Soccer Federation. His valuable contribution to the sport across several decades was recognised by induction into the Football Australia Hall of Fame in 2007. Barclay passed away in September 2014.
Ernie Barrett
Ernie Barrett was a member of the Victorian Soccer Federation tribunal for fifteen years between 1970 and 1985, serving as Chairman from 1981. He worked extensively with the Junior League Management Committee, serving as Secretary in 1974. He was awarded Life Membership by the VSF in 1985. Ernie Barrett passed away in 2008.
Shona Bass
A playing pioneer at the birth of the Victorian Women's Soccer Association in 1974, Shona Bass was a long standing state representative, having played for Victoria for over a decade, finishing runners-up in Melbourne in 1976 and Darwin in 1979, before ultimately winning in Alice Springs in 1987. She was a member of the national team that played the first A-internationals (8 caps in all). A highly qualified coach, Bass led junior state teams at National Championships and has volunteered on Women in Sport committees and associations to advocate for gender equality and safety for women and girls in sport and movement. Bass was inducted into the Football Victoria Hall of Fame in 2017.
Wally Bates
A goalkeeper with Prahran between 1937 and 1950, Wally Bates represented Victoria on four occasions. He picked up a whistle in 1951 and quickly established himself in the Victorian First Division as a Grade One referee. As an administrator, Bates was instrumental in the formation of the Australian Soccer Referees Federation where he served as treasurer and secretary for many years, his tireless efforts ultimately being rewarded with life membership. A qualified inspector, he was a member of the Victorian Soccer Federation (VSF) Referees Committee when it was established in 1975, serving as Chairman between 1982 until his death in 1989. A Member of the Order of Australia he was honoured with Life Membership to the VSF in 1984.
Dr Henry Baytch
Born in 1922, Dr Henry Baytch arrived in Australia from Germany after the second world war and joined Hakoah, where he served in roles as varied as club doctor, secretary, vice president and president. It was in the latter role that he served as a member of the Victorian Soccer Federation (VSF) State League Management Committee (1963-1968). He was awarded Life Membership by the VSF in 1967. Dr Baytch passed away on the Gold Coast in 1997, aged 75.
Tony Beazleigh
Born in England in 1932 and arriving in Melbourne in 1971 as a qualified referee with almost fifteen years of experience, Tony Beazleigh was at the top of his craft, officiating in the Victorian State League and National Soccer League until a knee injury forced him to retire in 1980. He was the President of the Victorian branch of the Australian Soccer Referees Association and was a member of the Victorian Referees Committee. He was also the State Director of Coaching and a qualified inspector, assessor and match commissioner. Awarded with Life Membership by Football Federation Victoria in 2015, Tony Beazleigh passed away the following year in 2016, aged 84.
Enver Begovic
Born in the mid 1920s, Enver Begovic (aka Jason Enver Abalon) enjoyed a brief playing career in the former Yugoslavia before arriving in Melbourne as a refugee via Austria in 1957. The proprietor of an infamous detective agency in Melbourne, Begovic served as president of Croatia SC and was a member of the State League council, ultimately being recognised with Life Membership by the VSF in 1967. He passed away in 2008.
Alex Blacklaw
Arriving in Australia from Scotland in 1963, Alex Blacklaw first settled in Whyalla, then New Zealand, before making Melbourne home in 1969. A member of the Investigation and Disciplinary Committee for over two decades from 1980, Blacklaw served on the tribunal with distinction until his passing in 2015. One of the reliable unsung heroes of the game he administered justice with fairness and good humour. He was honoured with Life Membership by the Victorian Soccer Federation in 1993.
Dick Bosma
A long-term Secretary of the Latrobe Valley Soccer League, Dick Bosma was honoured with Life Membership by the Victorian Soccer Federation in 1988 and passed away in 1998, aged 78. The Dick Bosma Medal for the league's Best and Fairest is named in his honour. He was posthumously inducted into the Gippsland Soccer League Hall of Fame in 2012.
Nancy Bosma
Honoured with Life Membership by the Victorian Soccer Federation in 1988, Nan Bosma was a volunteer administrator with the Latrobe Valley Soccer League until her passing in 2003, aged 81. The Nan Bosma Cup is named in her honour. She inducted into the Gippsland Soccer League Hall of Fame in 2012.
Hugh Boyd
Hugh Boyd first served as President of the Melbourne District Association in 1928, then assumed the equivalent role of the Victorian Amateur Soccer Football Association between 1929 and 1933, receiving Life Membership by the same organisation in 1931.
Geoff Boyle
A qualified referee, Geoff Boyle was Secretary of the ASRF/SRV Bendigo Branch, Match Inspector and Coach. A Life Member with the Bendigo Soccer League in 2005, Boyle became a Life Member of Football Victoria in 2010.
Margaret Bradley
A Life Member with the Bendigo Soccer League in 1986, Margaret Bradley became a Life Member of Football Victoria in 2010.
Arthur Brant
One of the founders of Rosebud Soccer Club in 1950, Arthur Brant became a member of the Metropolitan League Management Committee in 1959, where he served for many years until 1977, before becoming a member of the Investigation and Disciplinary Committee between 1978 and 1981. He was honoured with Life Membership by the Victorian Soccer Federation in 1973.
Joe Brondolino
Joe Brondolino served on the Victorian Soccer Federation (VSF) Metropolitan League Management Committee in 1981 and 1982, and served on the disciplinary tribunal for six years from 1991, four of them as Chairman. He was elected as Chairman of the VSF Commission in 1997, where he remained for three years before becoming a commissioner with Soccer Australia for an equivalent term. An instrumental figure in the sport at a time synonymous with upheaval, he was a member of the commission that culled the National Soccer League in 2001 and led a failed attempt against the installation of Frank Lowy as chairman of the newly formed Football Federation Australia in 2003. Always with the best interests of the sport at heart, he was ultimately honoured with Life Membership by Football Victoria in 2017.
Bailey Browning
A Life Member with the Bendigo Soccer League in 1995, Bailey Browning became a Life Member of Football Victoria in 2010.
Loris Browning
A Life Member with the Bendigo Soccer League in 1999, Loris Browning became a Life Member of Football Victoria in 2010.
Frank Burin
Born in Zadar, Croatia in 1938, Frank Burin arrived in Melbourne in 1957, and became heavily involved with the Croatia club, serving as vice-president between 1959 and 1961. He played a pivotal role in the club's move from Geelong to Melbourne, becoming president in 1962. He served as secretary of the club between 1963 and 1970 and on the Victorian Soccer Federation Board of Management and State League Management Committee from 1977 to 1983 and was awarded with Life Membership in 1994. Burin passed away in 2012, aged 74.
Tommy Burns
Tommy Burns dedicated over half a century of his life to football in Victoria, firstly as a distinguished referee in the days of the Victorian Amateur Soccer Football Association (VASFA) and then as an official, where he was a member of the VASFA Council and Appeals Board in the early 1950s. Burns was recognised with Life Membership by the Victorian Soccer Federation in 1966, the same year he became Vice President and Trustee, positions he held during various periods until his passing in 1978, aged 80.
John Burrows
A Football Federation Sunraysia Life Member, John Burrows became a Life Member of Football Victoria in 2010.
Ruth Burrows
A Football Federation Sunraysia Life Member, Ruth Burrows served as secretary of the Sunraysia Soccer League. Burrows became a Life Member of Football Victoria in 2010.
Stephen Butler
A life member with the Bendigo Amateur Soccer League in 1996, Stephen Butler became a Life Member of Football Victoria in 2010.
Eileen Bywater
A life member with Soccer Referees Victoria, Eileen Bywater became a Life Member of Football Victoria in 2000.
Terry Bywater
A life member with Soccer Referees Victoria, Terry Bywater became a Life Member of Football Victoria in 2000.