Photo: Five of the inaugural inductees into the Football Tasmania Hall of Fame. Football Tasmania unveiled its Football Hall of Fame on Saturday, 13 September when it announced the inaugural list of 11 inductees at the Football Tasmania 2025 Awards Night dinner at the Wrest Point Hotal Casino's Tasman Room.
Five hundred guests attended the function, where well-known television identity Brent Costelloe was the MC.The Hall of Fame was agreed upon following an idea promoted and vigorously pushed for by football personalty Matthew Rhodes.
Photo: Walter Pless with Chris Hudson and former star Rapid players Danny Donohue and Dale Blake.
Photo (L-R): Tony Pignata, CEO of Football Tasmania, Walter Pless, a historian of the game Paul Hunt. [Photo by Tanner Coad]Chris Hudson, the author of "A Century of Soccer: A History of Tasmanian Football", came to the function all the way from Kiama in New South Wales.
Hudson, and local football historian and expert Paul Hunt,did much of the research about the inaugural inductees on behalf of Football Tasmania and nominations were sought from clubs, coaches, players, officials and fans of the game in Tasmania.
Photo (L-R): Chris Hudson, Dale Blake and Ken Morton. [PlessPix]There will be further inductees at the end of every season from now on.
Photo: Another six of the inaugural inductees into the Football Tasmania Hall of Fame.
FOOTBALL TASMANIA HALL OF FAME –
INAUGURAL INDUCTEES
13 SEPTEMBER 2025
1. 1 Joseph Huxley Honeysett
Jo Joseph Huxley Honeysett was born in 1890, and arrived in
Tasmania as a child in 1904, living on the family farm at New Norfolk.
Joe first played for the New Norfolk
Football Club in 1906 before moving to South Hobart. He worked at the Cascade
Brewery.
He was a player of immense talent
and represented Tasmania in every interstate fixture from 1911 to 1924, a
tremendous record that will be hard to replicate. He also captained the State
on numerous occasions.
In the First World War, Joe was
promoted to captain and awarded the Military Cross in 1920, the year he
returned to Tasmania.
He famously captained the State
team against the touring Chinese side at the North Hobart Oval in October 1923,
Tasmania being the only state to beat the tourists.
Also in 1923, Tasmania toured
South Australia and Victoria. It was to become one of the most successful tours
to date with a 3-0 win in Adelaide and a 1-1 draw at the Fitzroy Oval against
Victoria.
A staunch South Hobart player, he
also captained the Southern Association team against the Northern Association
throughout the twenties and in one North v South clash bagged seven of the
eleven goals scored, which was a record.
When he hung up his boots in the
late twenties, he took up a position on the Southern Tasmanian British Football
Association for twelve years.
Joseph Huxley Honeysett was
inducted into the Football Australia Hall of Fame in 2022.
2. 2. Vic Tuting MBE
Affectionately known as “Mr Soccer”, Vic
Tuting was, by his own account, “never a really good player”, but once he
turned his hand to the game’s administration, he shone like a diamond.
He arrived in Launceston in 1920 from
Rochdale, England at the age of 15. He and his older brother signed on for the
Invermay club in 1921. Vic hung up his boots in 1934 and turned to
administration, becoming the Northern Tasmanian Soccer Association secretary in
1935.
Work commitments moved him South, and in 1938
he joined the Tasmanian Soccer Association (TSA). He held various positions on
the committee and became Chairman of the TSA in 1956. During this period, Vic
instigated that the TSA come under national control to unite Soccer Australia.
He was appointed the Tasmania Soccer Council’s
first Life Member in 1953. In the same year, he became a Life Member of the
Southern Tasmania Soccer Association.
From 1956, Vic had held every conceivable
position on the board. His administration skills were highlighted when he was
voted Vice President of Football Australia in 1974, a position he held until
1983.
In 1990 FIFA recognised Vic’s dedication to
the sport by awarding him a medallion for “Long Service to Football”, with the
Honorary Presidency to the Oceania Confederation. He received his medallion
from Heinz Marotz, one of FIFA’s top coaches at the time.
He was awarded an MBE for community services
in sports administration rendered. Vic covered every angle of the sport in
administration and was very good at bringing all parties together to resolve
situations. One of his famous quotes was: "Rules are never black and
white, there always has to be some elasticity."
At the age of 84, Vic was recognised by FIFA
for his life-long dedication to the sport at an Oceania Conference meeting held
in Fiji.
The Vic Tuting Medal is still awarded to the
Best and Fairest player in the Southern Championship, and Vic was also inducted
into the Football Australia Hall of Fame in 1999.
3. 3. Frederick
Joughin OAM
Frederick Joughin was born in
Liverpool England in 1925. He arrived in Tasmania after the war and was
involved with soccer in Tasmania as a player and administrator for fifty-eight
glorious years.
In an incredible playing record
for the University club, Fred missed the very first game in the 1950 season
when he joined, but didn’t miss another game until the 1956 season, 322 games
in total. But it is estimated Fred possibly played 600 games overall!
He became the TSA secretary in
1951, a position he held for five years.
At the University club, Fred was
a player, club captain and Head of the Selection Committee for six years from
1950 to 1955, during which time the team was in the Second Division.
Fred moved north due to work
commitments and became Burnie Celtic’s Chairman in 1955 and the following
year became the North-West Soccer Association’s Chairman.
He created the “high school to
club movement” for young, advanced players, which was a first. The idea
was to keep a flow of young talent coming through the ranks from schools to the
senior clubs on the coast.
He returned to Hobart in 1957 and
the following year he was elected as Chairman of the University club, a
position he held until 1978. The same year, Fred was elected club Honorary Life
President (to present day). In 1962 he became a Life Member of State’s Soccer
Council.
In 1966 Fred was made an Honorary
Life Member of the University Soccer Club, and in 2009 he received the Order of
Australia Medal (OAM).
A law graduate, his brilliant
mind helped galvanise the University club and was the instigator of the
move from sharing the rugby fields at Sandy Bay to the current home base at
Olinda Grove.
4. 4. Harold
Pattison
Born in Belfast, Ireland, Harold came to Tasmania in 1951 and was integral
part to the development of the game on the North-West coast.
He first played for Burnie Celtic, making his senior debut at the tender
age of 14 years old. He moved on to Devonport in 1964 where he became
synonymous with the game and the club.
Harold was a great inside-forward and a
lethal marksman, but was also noted for his tricky wing play. He represented
the State eight times over 11 years, scoring two goals, and was selected to
represent the North-West Association to play against the North and Southern
Association’s numerous occasions during the fifties and sixties.
On retirement from playing, Harold became a committee member of the
Devonport City Football Club for many years, eventually becoming its President.
He helped instigate and organise the club’s famous “Night Series” between
northern and north-west teams which was extremely popular at the time,
including the novelty of playing under lights. He became a Life Member of the
club in 1981.
In 2012 the club’s Best & Fairest Award was named in his honour. Harold
was involved with the merging of Mersey United and Devonport in 1966 to form
what is now the Devonport City Strikers.
As part of the clubroom redevelopment in 2022, the Strikers officially
opened the Harold Pattison Memorabilia Room.
Harold’s hard work and dedication has been a tremendous factor in the
growth and success of the game and the Devonport club for more than thirty
years.
5. 5. Gordon Rimmer
Gordon Rimmer arrived in Tasmania with his family in the mid 1950’s as a
young man and eventually became a pivotal figure in establishing football on the
north-west coast.
One of his massive contributions to football was the creation of the
current fields at Valley Road. Started in 1967, the Devonport Soccer Club
developed the area over time and construction of the first clubrooms began in
1970. They were officially opened in 1972, with Gordon Rimmer serving as club
President at the time.
In the club’s early days, Gordon
also arranged for the production of team shirts and other apparel through
Tootles Textiles where he worked as a manager.
Gordon’s contributions extended well
beyond administration. From 1980, he played a key role in securing overseas
coaches to lift the club’s standards and continued success.
These initiatives - engaging high
quality coaches and focusing on development of the club’s infrastructure - remain
today as key pillars of the club’s ongoing success and the game’s growth on the
coast.
Gordon was also a Board Member of
the NWTSA and as such was also instrumental in the administration of the game
on the North-West Coast.
Always being supported by his wife
Jean at his side, he encouraged the club to be the best it could be competitively
but maintaining a family friendly focus as well, that has flourished and grown.
He would be very proud to see what it has become today.
Following Gordon’s passing in 2001,
the original grandstand (and its replacement in 2025) was named The Gordon
Rimmer Stand in his honour — a tribute to his lasting legacy and dedication to
the club and the development of the sport.
Photo: Walter Pless and his wife Izumi and with some of their family.
6. 6. Walter Pless
Walter Pless arrived in Tasmania with his family as a young child from
Austria in the mid-fifties.
He first played for Croatia Glenorchy juniors and seniors in the sixties
then signed for Caledonians, Metro, Rapid and University during the sixties and
seventies.
He initially turned to coaching first at University, then Metro Claremont
and Croatia Glenorchy.
A teacher by profession, Walter easily turned his hand to writing about the
sport he loved, starting in 1978, and it was a love-affair that would span a
mammoth 46 years.
He covered football for The Hobart Mercury for over 25 years, while also
writing for Australian Soccer Weekly (Sydney), Soccer Action magazine
(Melbourne) and World Soccer magazine (London), Australian 4-4-2, and
“Goal Weekly” (Melbourne).
He also had a story published by the iconic “Goal” magazine, London, in the
eighties.
He retired from full time work in 2009 to concentrate on football writing
covering a sport that struggled for media coverage in the State.
Every week in his 25 years at the Mercury, Walter would write six articles
a week, including previews, reviews and general discussion of the sport. And
when Friday night football was introduced, he wrote up those games. It was a
well-read, extremely popular coverage of the sport.
In 2022 Walter was inducted into the Football Australia Hall of Fame for
services to football.
Walter’s unbiased, honest views on the game were very well received by his
peers, and his current internet blog “Walter Pless on Association Football” is
a go-to for everything to do with football.
7. 7. George Dale
George arrived in Tasmania from
Newcastle, England in March 1957, where
he made his home at George Town.
He immediately became involved
with the Northern Tasmanian Soccer Association as an administrator, where he
became president.
He was also a founding member and
past President of the Tasmanian Soccer League, Vice President of the Tasmanian
Soccer Federation, and a Tasmanian delegate to the National Soccer Federation
To this day, Football Tasmania’s
Northern Championship men’s Best and Fairest medal is named in his honour.
George presented this Award in
1975 & 1976 but passed away at the age of 62 in 1977.
8.
8. Peter Mies
Peter Johannas Mies leaves behind an extraordinary 64 continuous years of
active involvement in Tasmanian football.
He was born in 1936 in Neerbeek, Netherlands and arrived in Tasmania in
1960. He signed for Launceston Juventus and continued to play at the highest
level until he turned 44.
A talented footballer, he eventually became captain-coach, before his
contributions evolved into leadership roles that included committee member,
President, Life Member, and ultimately club Patron.
He was instrumental in securing the home ground at Prospect in 1978 in
partnership with the Australian Italian Club. He even put up his own family
home as collateral to purchase the site!
He first represented the State in 1964 against Victoria in the Australia
Cup. Peter was also a constant selection in the Northern Association Rep’ teams
in the seventies. His son Roger and grandson Noah also went on to represent the
State, becoming the first and only footballing family to this day in Tasmania
to claim the honour of having three generations representing Tasmania at the
highest level.
Peter was a stalwart of not just Launceston City FC, but of football in
Tasmania. Even in the final days before his sudden passing in 2024, current
officials, coaches, and board members regularly sought his counsel, a testament
to the immense respect and trust he inspired.
He was also responsible for bringing to Tasmania some noteworthy talent
including Peter Savill , Peter Sawdon, and Ernie and Colin Guest, helping to
raise the standard of the game across the State.
Launceston City names the annual “Peter Mies Rising Star Award” (both male
and female) in his honour, along with the new Peter Mies Pavilion at Prospect
Park in 2024.
9.
9. Milan Lakoseljac
Born in Croatia in 1947, Milan arrived in Tasmania in 1969 and made a
significant contribution to the local game.
Milan Lakoseljac became the most prolific goal scorer in Tasmania since
Walter Worsey in the sixties.
Milan won the Golden Boot award constantly in Southern Tasmania during the
seventies, taking out the award in 1971, 1973, 1974, 1979 and 1981. This is a phenomenal
record when one looks at the high standard of players around him in the
seventies.
He was extremely quick and was nicknamed by his teammates “Monaro” after
the Holden Monaro car, which in those days was one of the fastest cars on our
roads.
He was part of the famous 1970 Croatia Glenorchy side that won the treble –
the State Title, Statewide Cup and Southern League Title in that year.
Milan won the Best and Fairest Award in 1971 and again in 1973 while
playing for Croatia Glenorchy. He retired from playing in 1981.
He coached junior football at the Glenorchy club for five years.
Among his charges was his son Brendan Lakoseljac, who himself became a prolific
goalscorer at the club. His grandson Bradley plays to this day with South
Hobart.
He went onto coach senior players and in 1991 guided Croatia Glenorchy to a
reserve premiership. The following year 1992, he coached the senior team from a
distant fourth position in the finals series to a memorable State Championship
win over Devonport City.
Sadly, Milan passed away in 1999 aged 52 after a lengthy illness. The
Statewide Cup was renamed and relaunched in 2000 as the Milan Lakoseljac
Memorial Trophy to honour his memory and continues to be awarded each year.
10 Ken Morton
Ken’s vast array of international coaching experience brought the next
level of professionalism to the State and he has to be considered as the most
successful coach in the history of the game in Tasmania.
Born in Copley County Durham, UK in 1947, he played for several English
clubs before moving overseas. He made 14 appearances in England, mainly at York
City.
He arrived in Tasmania in 1979 and over the years played for Caledonian,
Rapid, Hobart Juventus, Olympia, Croatia Glenorchy, Devonport and Launceston
City, being player/coach for the majority of those teams.
Overseas, Ken coached in Malaysia, Maldives, Vietnam and went back to UK
for a brief spell at Walsall. He also coached the Wollongong Wolves for a
season.
Where he coached, medals followed; Rapid Wrest Point, Juventus, Croatia
Glenorchy, Hobart Olympia, but it was when he joined South Hobart in 2008
that everything clicked.
Under Ken’s guidance, South Hobart went through an incredible phase of 65
games undefeated, winning the Premiership titles from 2008 to 2012. Also in
these years, the club won three State Play-off Titles in succession.
President of South Hobart Football Club from 2009-2024, after joining the
board in 2003, he has moulded the club into a truly professional outfit.
Morton’s Soccer School is now paramount in coaching kids the correct way to
play and the school is nurturing young talent and investing in the future of
football across the State.
It’s Ken’s legacy to the game he has cherished from those early days as a
15-year-old on Manchester United’s books to his present day success.
Ken’s passion for the game and worldly experience has lifted the coaching
bar in Tasmania to the next level.
11. David Pease
It’s rare for a player to stay with the same
club for the majority of their playing career, but to also continue in
administration when they have hung up their boots is dedication personified.
David was a Somerset Sharks player from 1985
until 2000, 260 games in all and took over senior coaching duties in 2002/2003.
He was voted club person of the year in 1992 and
gained Life Membership in 2002.
He has served on the Executive Committee of the
Sharks for 20 years - eight as Treasurer and 12 as President – and more than 28
years on the Committee in total.
David knew that the club would not survive
long-term if it did not have a junior pathway coming through to its senior
ranks.
He has been heavily involved in the WSSA
(Western School Soccer Association), serving on the Executive Committee and assisting
with the coaching and operation of the Skill Acquisition Program (SAP). In
2023/24 David was instrumental in establishing the Somerset Junior Development
Program.
Originally only 30 juniors signed up, but with
David’s dedication to the program there are now hundreds enjoying the SAP
program which benefits all the North-West coast, with players travelling from
as far afield as the West Coast and Circular Head areas to participate.
David lobbied for the development of the
Cardigan Street ground, liaising with grant bodies, government, and peak bodies
to get the improvements necessary for the club to move forward. This has
resulted in new lights, drainage and resurfacing of the grounds and the current
grant to build new change rooms and toilets.
He has been a Junior and Youth Coach in both the
North West League and Northern Youth Premier League from 2020 to present day.
His advocacy for the sport and tireless efforts to improve junior numbers on
the coast is admirable.
