South Melbourne FC confirms that popular goalkeeper Nikola Roganovic has retired.
Roganovic, a former SMFC National Youth League championship winner in 2004, returned to Lakeside as a proven top-flight goalkeeper in January 2015. He kept a clean sheet in his first competitive game for the club in February 2015 and went on to represent SMFC in 82 league/finals matches (keeping 30 clean sheets), with 101 competitive appearances (37 clean sheets) across all competitions.
He was in between the sticks for South’s 2015 Premiership and Dockerty Cup triumphs (keeping a clean sheet in the 3-0 Dockerty Cup final win over Oakleigh) and made several excellent saves in SMFC’s 2016 NPL Victoria Grand Final triumph over Oakleigh. Individually, he won the SMFC Players’ Player of the Year in 2016 and, having been part of a championship with the club, is an automatic SMFC Hall of Fame member.
Speaking to smfc.com.au, Football Director NIcholas Maikousis thanked Nikola for his outstanding service. “We would like to thank Nikola for his efforts while with the club, where his performances in goals were an integral part of the club winning numerous trophies during that particular period. His ability to also positively engage with the supporters was also a highlight of his time at the club and we will miss seeing him representing the South family. We wish him and his family all the best for the next phase of his life.”
Roganovic was also thankful for his time at the club. “To play for South was a dream come true and it was a wonderful experience to be part of the club that i wanted to play for as a kid. I would like to thank everyone at the club and our wonderful fans for all the support throughout my time at Lakeside. As a fan, i now wish the club the very best for the upcoming season and will be watching closely.”
SMFC would also like to thank Nikola for his service to the club.