He won NPL WA's top honour while fighting relegation. Now he's done it again, by a landslide

Fremantle City star Charlie Chechlacz has been crowned NPL WA’s best player in 2026.

Twelve months ago, Chechlacz was named NPL WA's best player despite Fremantle needing a relegation play-off to preserve their top-flight status. Now the English midfielder has gone back-to-back, completing a remarkable turnaround for both player and club.

The Fremantle captain claimed his second consecutive NPL WA Men's Gold Medal, becoming the first player since Daryl Nicol in 2018 and 2019 to win the prestigious honour in successive seasons.

This time, there was no close contest as Chechlacz collected an extraordinary 38 votes, finishing 16 clear of Bayswater City's Luke Palmateer (22), with Olympic Kingsway striker Liam Boland third on 21.

“It's pretty unbelievable, I'm almost lost for words,” Chechlacz said.

His individual success capped a vastly different campaign for Fremantle, who followed last season's relegation escape with a run to the Australia Cup Round of 16 and State Cup glory, with Chechlacz scoring the winning goal in the final.

The midfielder also credited the influence of former Socceroo and A-League champion Josh Risdon, who joined Fremantle after Round Eight, alongside summer recruits Chad Nilson and Iljas Ahmedov.

“Josh has made a massive difference,” he said. “To have a player of his stature come in has been great, he's taken us to a new level.”

Chechlacz revealed his performances had attracted interest from rival clubs, but confirmed he had committed to Fremantle for another season.

“With the coaches, the leadership, the crew and whatnot, everything we've got going on, you don't want to jump off the ship at the minute,” he said. “Everything's really good. I love being at Freo.”