National Soccer League Player of the Year
Award
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The National Soccer League Player of the Year was an annual soccer award present to the most outstanding player in Australia's National Soccer League. The award was established in the NSL's first season in 1977 and it ran until 1989. The following season it was replaced by the Johnny Warren Medal.
| National Soccer League Player of the Year | |
|---|---|
| Awarded for | The best player in each given NSL season |
| Country | Australia |
| First award | 1977 |
| Final award | 1989 |
| Most awards | Frank Farina and Bobby Russell (2) |
The inaugural winner was Jimmy Rooney of Marconi, who finished second that season.[1] The last winner of the award was Zlatko Nastevski, who played for table-toppers Marconi when he won the award.[2] Bobby Russell and Frank Farina are the only people to have won the award twice.
From 1977 until 1985 the vote was purely done by referees. Then, between 1986 and 1988, two winners were announced, one voted by the referees and one voted by the players. In 1989, it was only the players voting.[3]
Winners
| Season | Player | Nationality | Club | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1977 | Jimmy Rooney |  Australia |
Marconi | [3] |
| 1978 | Ken Boden | Australia |
Newcastle United | |
| 1979 | Ivo Prskalo | Australia |
Marconi | |
| 1980 | Jim Hermiston |  Scotland |
Brisbane Lions | |
| 1981 | Bobby Russell | Australia |
Adelaide City | |
| 1982 | Peter Katholos | Australia |
Sydney Olympic | |
| 1983 | Joe Watson | Australia |
Sydney City | |
| 1984 | Sergio Melta | Australia |
Adelaide City | |
| 1985 | Graham Honeyman | Australia |
West Adelaide | |
| 1986 | Bobby Russell† (2) | Australia |
South Melbourne | |
| Graham Arnold* | Australia |
Sydney Croatia | ||
| 1987 | Andrew Zinni† | Australia |
Brunswick Juventus | |
| Frank Farina* | Australia |
Marconi | ||
| 1988 | Paul Wade† | Australia |
South Melbourne | |
| Frank Farina* (2) | Australia |
Marconi | ||
| 1989 | Zlatko Nastevski | Australia |
Marconi |
* Player-voted award † Referee-voted award
Multiple winners
| Awards | Player | Team | Seasons |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | Bobby Russell |
Adelaide City / South Melbourne | 1981, 1986 |
| 2 | Frank Farina |
Marconi | 1987, 1988 |
Awards won by club
| Club | Wins |
|---|---|
| Marconi | 5 |
| Adelaide City | 2 |
| South Melbourne | 2 |
| Brisbane Lions | 1 |
| Brunswick Juventus | 1 |
| Newcastle United | 1 |
| Sydney City | 1 |
| Sydney Croatia | 1 |
| Sydney Olympic | 1 |
| West Adelaide | 1 |