Kalahockey has a rich history, dating back over 55 years to 1967. A club formed from humble beginnings by John Stewart and Ralph Blazey at the Kalamunda Hotel, Kalamunda Districts Hockey Club quickly expanded from a single men’s team in its inaugural year to six teams (including two junior boy’s teams) just five years later. Alongside this a women’s team was formed, playing in the Hills competition that year. Consistently performing and moving up in grades, Kalamunda soon became a formidable opponent, known for its competitive nature against more experienced and larger clubs.

In 1977, Kalamunda Districts Hockey Club made the move from Davies Park in Maida Vale to Hartfield Park in Forrestfield, with improved facilities and room for three fields. It wasn’t until 10 years later, however, that Kalamunda was given its own clubrooms, with a Pavilion named after David Scanlon, a prominent player and member at the club. Unfortunately, the 1988 season following saw the passing of two of the biggest names associated with Kalamunda Hockey in Ralph Blazey and David Scanlon, who both continue to be honoured today with awards in their names.

In 1989 the club officially changed its colours from yellow and black to the more familiar blue, red and white, although the bright blue shirts and tracksuits were somewhat unpopular to begin with! It was also this year that the Lesmurdie Ladies Hockey Club officially merged with the Kalamunda Men, forming the Kalamunda Districts Hockey Club we know today.

The early 1990s was filled with an ambitious plan for the construction of a world-class hockey facility, with two synthetic fields and a spacious clubroom with and indoor field. Unfortunately this plan was never realised. By this stage Kalamunda had 13 teams, and had a stable position in the Hockey WA leagues.

The club continued to thrive throughout the 90s and into the 2000s, with a strong group of loyal members continuing to grow the junior and senior teams. A number of additional uniform changes were made, opting for the Royal Blue over the original “Smurf” Blue. The minkey program saw a surge in players, providing a large cohort of juniors for an extended period of time.

By early 2019, Kalahockey had well and truly outgrown its old, cramped clubrooms, with a huge increase in the number of players requiring a total of 20 teams! Kalahockey clubrooms and playing fields were completed, and the club quickly fell in love with the new facilities. Although missing the cherry on top of a synthetic surface, the club continued to promote the wonderful sport of hockey.

Currently Kalahockey has over 350 members and counting, with 23 teams (and our KalaMinkey crew!) all proudly wearing the Kalamunda colours. The future of Kalahockey is looking bright, with plans for significant lighting upgrades and eventually realising the dream of a Kalahockey synthetic surface.

If you would like to learn more about the history of Kalahockey, please click here. Special thanks go to one of our Life Members, Phil Fawell, for his research and collation of information.