Congratulations to Kaitlan Allen who played her 50th game for the Kalamunda Cougars against the Kingsway ‘Roos’ at Kingsway Reserve.
Kaitlan is a fierce competitor who is driven with the ambition to outperform her previous best, constantly improving in any way she can.
She had a breakout year in 2024 and was the recipient of the coaches award. With 12 goals up forward (season best for women to date) and featuring in the best players most weeks.
Kaitland changed it up another gear in 2025, proving she ain’t a one trick pony by playing in the ruck, giving her mid’s first use out of the middle and taking strong contested marks around the ground.
As well as the previous season, she played in every game (37 consecutive to date) and after a very consistent season polled well in the end of season awards earning runner up best and fairest.
Well-done Kaitland, your will to win and drive to improve on your craft every day is admirable.
Keep taking your game to new heights and get more wins with more epic performances.
Round 4 provided some memorable moments and milestones. Alex Haight has once again provided tributes to our clubs champions
Congratulations to Jesse Jenkins who played his 50th game for the Kalamunda Cougars last Saturday against the Coolbinia Falcons at Harmony Fields in Maddington.
Jesse is an absolute rock-solid defender in the back line who takes the game on and backs himself. His ability to read the play with great decision making and intercept marking skills makes him a very reliable player and one of the first picked every week. He is a humble and relaxed character, but make no mistake he is as competitive as they come and his effort and desire to win is a big reason why he has the edge over his opponent most weeks.
Well done Jesse, who has been a crucial part of the backline in the last few seasons with his polish and relentless attack on the ball.
Congratulations to Ashton McGowan who played his 50th game for the Kalamunda Cougars last Saturday against the Melville Rams at Harmony fields in Maddington.
Ash is a livewire sharpshooter up forward and a dangerous matchup for any defender. A goal kicking machine with 75 goals to date in his career in just over 3 seasons of football. He made his league debut last season at the young age of 20, playing in 16 of the possible 20 matches, including both the semi and grand final.
Well done Ash, your consistency and ability to hit the scoreboard each week is impressive. A great start to your career and progressing nicely. Keep kicking a bag in the future and show the opposition who’s boss
Congratulations also to Mitch Della-Franca who played his 100th game for the Kalamunda Cougars last Saturday when the mighty Cougars did battle with the Melville Rams at Harmony Fields in Maddington.
Mitch is a hard running half back flanker who provides plenty of drive out of the backline and shows strong leadership skills beyond his years. He has been a consistent performer from the get go, He debuted at Colts level in 2021 and ultimately won a flag in his very first season at the club. The following year he was voted by his peers as colts captain and tasted success again winning a second consecutive flag (back-to-back baby!)
2023 he was voted captain again and rose his game to another level finishing the season with a runner up best and fairest award. After aging out of Colts, he was picked to play league the following year and has not missed a beat since. In fact since his league debut, he has only missed one game, playing in 43 of a possible 44 games including a grand final appearance in 2025.
Well done Della, you’ve accomplished quite a lot in such a short time and you should be proud. It has been great seeing you grow your game over the last few years and excited to see what the future brings for you. All the best mate, go well for the future!
Congratulations also go to Josh Touchell who notched his 150th game last Saturday when the Kalamunda Cougars went into battle against the Melville Rams at Harmony Fields in Maddington.
Josh began his career at the Cougars back in 2016 and I was lucky enough to jag his name out of the hat at adopt-a-colt night. After getting to know him and watching him play, I quickly picked up that behind this relaxed character was a fierce competitor who took his footy very seriously.
Josh is a tall rangy defender with a great footy brain and long wingspan. His ability to impact at contests and his work rate to get over and help his teammates has opposition teams asking themselves, ”How do they always seem to have that one extra player on the field!”
Josh captained the colts in 2017 when the club was in A grade and since then he has been a mainstay at league level. He has notched nearly 100 games at the top level and has battled and played through injury concerns on numerous occasions. Behind the scenes he goes beyond the normal lengths with his recovery doing everything he can to get up come game day.
Josh has played a crucial role in big games over the years. Anyone who has ever played down back would tell you it’s a selfless role that demands teamwork, communication and the respect of the playing group. Josh has all these qualities in spades.
Well done mate, this is a huge achievement. You’ve been a rock-solid player for the club for over a decade now and I hope you continue to enjoy your footy in a long future
Thanks to Don Benson photography for the great photos!
This post is dedicated to, GROUNDFORCE WA
proud sponsors of the Kalamunda ‘Cougars’ Football Club.
GROUNDFORCE WA proudly servicing the mining, civil, fire suppression and power generation industries throughout WA.
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