Peter Simonoski has capped an incredible 2023 campaign by winning the Illawarra Premier League's highest individual honour on Friday night.
The Cringila skipper received the George Naylor Medal at Football South Coast's Men's Gala Awards Night at the Fraternity Club.
Simonoski held off a challenge from fellow finalist Shinjiro Shibuya (Corrimal) to secure the prestigious honour. He joins the likes of Chris Price, Billy Tsovolos, Yusuke Ueda and Guy Knight as previous winners of the medal.
The award comes on the back of a stellar IPL season by Simonoski, who also claimed the league's Golden Boot award. The former Wollongong Wolves talent found the back of the net 31 times during the 2023 competition, besting Bulli skipper Ben McDonald by one.
Simonoski also guided the Lions to a second-place finish in the championship race and ensured they booked back-to-back finals appearances. Cringila made it all the way to the grand final for the first time in three decades, where they agonisingly fell 1-0 to rivals Coniston at WIN Stadium last month.
However, the Lions skipper - who is affectionately known by teammates as 'Simo' - is already hellbent on gaining redemption for the defeat, recently inking a new deal with the club for the 2024 season.
Simonoski has been joined by a host of teammates - including Ekoue D'Almeida, Michael Mendes and Ben Zucco - in re-committing to Cringila for next year.
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Joshua Bartlett
A sporting fanatic who is keen to promote all codes in the Illawarra and abroad. Mercury's chief football reporter.
A sporting fanatic who is keen to promote all codes in the Illawarra and abroad. Mercury's chief football reporter.
