Coniston mourns Johnny Poposki, the legend who made JJ Kelly Park pristine

He was most famously known for his pristine pitches at Coniston's home ground JJ Kelly Park, but in reality his impact at the club was so much more.

"I met Johnny when my boy and his boy were in the under sixes of Coniston when the juniors were having difficulties finding players," Coniston president and one of Poposki's closest friends John Karayiannis explained.

"We were involved with the juniors when the seniors gave us a call and asked us if we could help out. At the time we were wondering if we should do it or not.

"So he was one of the very early people who committed to helping save the senior club. I took responsibility of operations, he took responsibility for the ground but his role was so much more. He also coached junior teams, he was on the committee... pretty much everything outside of his work was about the club."

Poposki was diagnosed with cancer in 2022 and sadly passed away from the disease on January 5, 2024.

Around 300-400 people attended his funeral at the Macedonian Church in Wollongong earlier this week, further highlighting the massive impact he had on so many people's lives.

"The one thing that everyone knew Johnny for was the ground," Karayiannis continued.

"He had special rules like no one's allowed on JJ Kelly Park unless you're an official. He used to take so much pride in that ground. Even a divot in the wrong spot had to be repaired. A lot of the reason why JJ Kelly has such a fantastic reputation now is because of Johnny.

"Johnny was a real people's person. He always had time for people. He was very generous, very selfless and he was loved by many.

"Personally speaking, he's probably one of three people who believed in me when I had a vision that we could go to the Premier League when we were in Community League. Most people thought I was nuts. But he believed in it and supported the vision.

"Volunteers are the bedrock of the club. Without volunteers, we can't survive."

In memory of Poposki, Coniston will be holding a memorial golf day on Monday, January 22, where there is expected to over 80 golfers. Anyone and everyone is welcome to attend the day which will act as a fundraiser for the family.

In addition to this, Coniston's first trial match at JJ Kelly Park against Liverpool Olympic on February 11 will see some of Poposki's closest friends and family honoured.