The Kalamunda Bulls have won the 2019 Club Championship award off the back of an extremely successful juniors’ program.
Having been awarded the RugbyWA Juniors Club Championship last week at the RugbyWA Juniors AGM, Kalamunda were in a strong position to take out the title having a total of four teams making it to the junior grand finals in 2019.
The success of their junior program for the 2019 season can be contributed to the number of volunteers and coaches who dedicated their time to developing the future of Kalamunda rugby.
This volunteer and coaching base was led by key figures at the club including Lane and Kelly Mandin alongside Sandy Sugden to name a few who played major roles in the 2019 junior rugby program that ultimately led to the club bringing home two junior titles.
One of those titles was the Under 15s girl’s championship which Kalamunda led by head coach Alan Mcfillin took away the championship after a three game round-robin series.
The continued effort to bring through young female talent to feed Kalamunda’s ever so successful Kalamunda Kweens side and ultimately the RugbyWA Women is now yielding results at the junior level.
Bringing home the award for the club was also a number solid performances seen at the senior level.
The Kweens performed admirably in the Alcohol. Think Again Women’s competition making it into one of the most exciting grand finals seen in recent history, falling short by a point to Wanneroo in the dying moments.
Led by captain and number eight Neesha Barrett the Kween’s boasted a super star backline which included two Wallaroos in Ariana Hira-Herangi and Trilleen Pomare, this was backed up by star up and comer halfback Crystal Walters who was dynamic in her first few games for the RugbyWA Women at the start of the year.
In the Fortescue Senior Men’s competition Kalamunda also put their name into lights particularly in the higher grades.
The reserve grade side snared third spot in competition while the Fortescue Premier Grade side was able to move up to Championship Division final after a strong back end of the season.
With new coach Kane Allen taking the reins of the Bull’s premier team in 2019 Kalamunda introduced a plethora of new young talent with the goal of long-term success at the club.
State representatives Tiare Sugden and Jackson Bond had strong seasons with the team, Sugden coming in after an injury to captain Jack Weir who had a stellar start to year taking April’s Fortescue Player of the Month award.
The combination of promising rookies and seasoned veterans in the Kalamunda side set the stage for some strong performances for the team leading to the Championship Division final appearance.
Despite the side going down by 20 points against a firing Palmyra side the runner-up position in the Championship Division was enough to push them to the Club Championship crowning.
The award can’t be attributed to the players alone as many key factors in the running of the club paved the way for the championship season.
The structure of the club set up and run by president Graham England has been geared to provide successful performances over the coming years for Kalamunda and 2019 Club Championship award is a testament to that goal.
From grassroots to the Fortescue Premier Grade, Kalamunda Rugby Club efforts to develop talent has now been proven with the 2019 Club Championship award.
Expect to see this club succeed for years to come.
