Former Footscray JUST star Jim Milisavljevic is the latest inductee to the FV Hall of Fame.
Milisavljevic dedicated a lifetime to football as a player, coach, match official and administrator before his death in 2022 when he was 70.
Born on April 15, 1952, Milisavljevic grew up playing Australian rules football and junior soccer with Footscray JUST. He was talented at both sports, but chose to focus on soccer.
His senior debut for JUST came on his 17th birthday.
As his career began to flourish at JUST, Milisavljevic featured in multiple Victorian senior squads mainly as back up.
This talent was recognised by his selection in the 1974 FIFA World Cup squad, after a string of impressive performances as a substitute for Australia.
After seven years in goals for JUST and a trifecta of championships, a recurring hand injury changed things.
He was brought on as a substitute in that year’s Ampol Cup final, claiming the solitary goal and ultimate winner against South Melbourne Hellas in extra time.
Milisavljevic continued to play for JUST as an outfielder for a few more seasons, before dropping down multiple divisions to join Carlton Serbia in 1980, where he enjoyed a long stint as playing coach as they later became Ringwood United.
Post-playing career, Milisavljevic picked up the whistle and enjoyed several seasons as a referee, rising through the ranks.
Age restrictions prevented him making it to the top level, and he ultimately moved into coaching and administration, when he was more commonly known as Jim Mills.
His influence extended to the game’s administration, serving with the Victorian Soccer Federation (VSF) on the state league management committee between 1993 and 1999, the final year as chairman. He also spend three seasons as commissioner of the VSF.
Son Milan Milisavljevic said it was a bittersweet feeling for his father to be recognised with him not here to accept the award.
“I think dad would have been over the moon,” he said. “He loved the game and wanted to give back to it, it made him happy and bought him joy.
“It definitely wouldn’t have been his driver, he would have been happy and proud he would have been recognised it wasn’t the reason he would have done what he did in the first place.”
