It is with a heavy heart that Inglewood United advises the passing of Siegfried ‘Ziggy’ Kramer, a true legend of West Australian football. Born in Romania in 1937, Kramer emigrated to Australia with his family at the age of 13 and three years later embarked on a sixty-plus year association with the modern day Inglewood club.

A goalkeeper by trade, Kramer first played for Kiev (as Inglewood was then known) in 1953 and over the following decade helped the club climb into the top tier of State League football. Upon retirement Kramer turned his hand to coaching his beloved Kiev, guiding them to Division One (1967) and Top Four Cup (1968) titles.

Between 1971 and 2013 Kramer served on the club committee non-stop, as secretary, treasurer and president, the latter a position he held for nineteen years from 1994. At the same time he also served as a board member for the Professional Soccer League (1998-2001) and Soccer Association of WA (2000-2001).

Kramer’s service to the development of football was recognised in 2003 by the Australian Government, who bestowed upon him the Centenary Medal. He was inducted into the Football Hall of Fame Western Australia in 2002 and last year was awarded Life Membership of Football West.

Photo by Jeremy Dixon / The Perth Voice