SMJFL Celebrates Outstanding Achievements at 2026 Presentation Night
On Thursday the 17th of September, the South Metro Junior Football League welcomed players, club administrators and their families to the Kingston City Hall to celebrate the achievements of the 2026 season. They were joined by SMJFL Board Members, SMJFL Life Members, SMJFL staff, and partners including TLC Healthcare, Grill'd, Recognition ID, TeamSports4All, ISC Teamwear, and Community First Responders Australia to recognise the achievements of the year.
To kick off the night, SMJFL CEO Jamie Howden shared the success of the 2026 season, with 10,406 players taking to the field in almost 3,500 games across 476 teams and 25 member clubs across the 15 home and away rounds, the Welcome to Footy feature weekend, Lightning Carnivals, and Finals Series. All of this was supported by more than 6,000 volunteers and 1,044 registered umpires.
Throughout the evening, the SMJFL recognised Best and Fairest award winners, Interleague award winners, and premiership teams. SMJFL General Manager of Football Operations, Nathan Broadbent, reflected on the success of the 2026 SMJFL Finals Series, with 159 finals played over the three weeks, hosted by 18 clubs. All 24 clubs with non-modified teams had a least one team in a Grand Final, with 22 clubs winning at least one premiership.
The SMJFL also presented the prestigious League Awards, recognising the off-field achievements of the individuals and clubs who go above and beyond all season long.
Presented by TeamSports4All Bayside and Port Phllip Coordinator, Fiona Gathercole, the 2026 TeamSports4All Inclusion Award was this year awarded to St Kilda City Junior Football Club. Spearheaded by Katie Brown, in 2026 St Kilda City hosted the TeamSports4All sock packing day for the second consecutive year, bringing together volunteers from across the club to pack socks ahead of TeamSports4All Round in round 10. Katie is also a longtime advocate for TeamSports4All, having attended TeamSports4All events to share her experience of welcoming TeamSports4All to the club.
The Recognition ID Volunteer of the Year award, presented by Recognition ID Business Development Manager, Shannon Thiel, was awarded to Katrina Gray of St Paul's McKinnon Junior Football Club. Beginning her volunteering journey in Auskick, Katrina established and led a girls' transition program that helped create a clear pathway to the SMJFL's inaugural Under 8 Girls competition in 2026. Through her advocacy, the club delivered a tailored pre-season Superkick program that helped remove finaincial barriers for families and kept girls connected to football year-round.
The Westinghouse Club Administrator of the Year is a culmination of the Westinghouse Club Administrator of the Month series, where standout administrators were nominated by their clubs for going above and beyond. In a highly competitive field, the award was this year presented to Andrew Parker of Prahran Junior Football Club, who has dedicated an astronomical amount of time to the club across five different roles, coaching two teams, running Auskick, managing merchandise, and this year stepping up as the club's Head of Footy Operations.
Tom Blackburn, Head of Customer, NPD and Partnerships at Grill'd, presented the Grill'd Awesome Effort Award to Hampton Rovers Junior Football Club for their involvement in the Grill'd Cub Rewards Program in 2026 through event activation, club communications, social media and recognising the awesome efforts of their people. During the Grill'd Themed Round in round 6, the Hampton Rovers volunteered immediately to host the league activation, and helped to create buzz and excitement around the occasion. They also kept Grill'd front of mind in their club communications and made sure their members knew what was on offer, earning them the 2026 award.
The 2026 SMJFL Club Behaviour Award was awarded to the club with the lowest percentage of Poor behaviour ratings throughout the season. In 2026, this award was presented to Port Melbourne Colts Junior Football Club.
Throughout the year, young people were nominated by their clubs for the 2026 Monash University Leader of the Year award, to recognise individuals who demonstrate leadership qualities and lead through their actions. This year, James Rigano of Highett Junior Football Club was named the winner. Every Wednesday and Sunday this season, James has volunteered at Highett's Auskick program, giving his time to the youngest kids at the club and backing up the coordinator with whatever's needed. He's also part of the club's young leaders program, which aims to get players and volunteers positively involved and giving back to the community.
Finally, the TLC Healthcare Sportsmanship Award was presented by TLC Healthcare CEO, Lou Pascuzzi, to Madeline French of St Kilda City Junior Football Club. After suffering a serious, season-ending injury, Madeline found another way to contribute by taking on the head coach role for St Kilda City's Under 15 Girls Division 1 team, leading them into finals. Through her resilience and optimism in the face of adversity, Madeline earned the respect of her team, her club, and ultimately the league by showing everyone what it means to be a good sport.
The SMJFL extends our congratulations to all 2026 award nominees, winners, Best and Fairest recipients, and premiers. A full list of the top ten Best and Fairest placegetters and their votes for each competition can be found here.
The league would also like to take this opportunity to acknowledge our ten year players, who were presented with their trophies throughout the season. Playing with the SMJFL for ten years represents a significant commitment, and is a fantastic achievement. A full list of 2026 SMJFL Ten Year Players can be found here.
The Presentation Night was a fitting celebration of a season built on teamwork, leadership, sportsmanship and community spirit. The league thanks its clubs, volunteers, umpires, partners and families for their contribution throughout 2026 and looks forward to welcoming everyone back in 2027.
