Northern Inland Football: Lachlan Wilson claims two awards at North Companions presentation night

So when he picked up the Golden Boot and Player of the Year awards at Northies' recent presentation night, Wilson was more surprised than anyone.

"I was shocked when I got the Player of the Year," Wilson said.

"I thought I'd be in the running, but there were other players who deserved it as well."

Despite an affiliation with the game that stretches back 11 years, the 20-year-old told the Leader his passion for it had faded at the start of the pandemic.

After taking a break from soccer in 2020 to play futsal at East Coast Futsal in Port Macquarie, the onset of COVID-19 lockdowns in Australia caused Wilson to miss an exciting opportunity.

"They did an overseas trip to Italy, and me and a few other mates got invited to go back for trials," Wilson said.

"COVID stuffed us around, and then I sort of lost the passion for it."

He took a year off from sport in 2021, and went to the Northies' trial simply "to watch my mates have a run".

"Then [Gavin Thompson, Companions assistant coach] and the boys started harassing me to come play again," Wilson said.

Though he did cave to the pressure from the team and agreed to make his first return to Northies since 2019, Wilson didn't expect that he would rediscover his ardor.

And in reality, it wasn't so much a love of the game he found. What kept him coming back was the pleasure of playing alongside his friends.

"I really didn't want to play," Wilson said.

"But I enjoyed the start of the season, it was really fun to play. Especially playing with mates, that makes it so much more enjoyable."

That enjoyment spurred Wilson on to a sterling year for the men in white and black. He scored 11 goals, helped guide Northies to the first grade grand final, and, in the opinion of coach Andrew Mahony, firmly established himself as a leader of the future.

"I think that he will be definitely a leader amongst any junior players coming forward," Mahony said.

"He's a really quiet bloke, and he was encouraged to come and join ... from a size, skill, and speed point of view, he was consistent all year."

After his reluctance to get back on the field, Wilson loved playing in 2022 and expects he will return in 2023.

"I think I will," he said.

"I had a few teams ask me after the season to come and play for them, but I don't want to be the person to jump around clubs. I like to stick with one and give them my all."

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