Vale Ulysses Kokkinos
South Melbourne FC is in mourning following the passing of Hall of Fame Member, Championship Winner, Club Legend and friend Ulysses Kokkinos.
Kokkinos was a larger-than-life figure and someone who was a large part of the South Melbourne family.
He made his first team debut for South Melbourne Hellas as a teenager in 1967 and made an immediate impact by winning the club’s top goal scorer that season, netting 15 league goals and 17 across all competitions.
He went on to represent the club over several stints between 1967 and 1976. Kokkinos’ first team honour with the club was in 1970 when Hellas won the Ampol Cup final replay with a 3-2 victory over JUST in extra time. In 1974 he was part of a very successful Hellas side that did the double in winning the Victorian State League championship (finishing four points ahead of George Cross in first place on the ladder) as well as the Dockerty Cup (4-1 victory over Ringwood City Wilhelmina).
Kokkinos was also part of the team that won back-to-back Dockerty Cup in 1975, with a 2-1 win over Sunshine City. Individually, he was a star attraction at the grounds with his skills and great goals and was rightly rewarded with selection with the Victorian state side.
Speaking to SMFC Media, an emotional President Nicholas Maikousis paid tribute to Kokkinos. “Ulysses was not just a figure known to all of us at South Melbourne but the Australian Football Community. As a footballer, he was a showman and someone who entertained whenever he stepped onto the park, while also contributing to the wealth of success at the club throughout that period. In latter years, he would be around the club as a fan, encouraging our players and teams as we continued to strive for success. He will be greatly missed by our community.”
The club will honour his life and memory at our Round 1 home match against Heidelberg United on February 17th.