In pictures: SuperKids SuperHeroes at Bridgetown Football Club

Warm Winter weather and a vibrant atmosphere made for an incredible charity event at Bridgetown Football Club at the weekend, with a whopping $41,950 raised for a great cause through the annual SuperKids SuperHeroes Round. Members, supporters, sponsors and the Bridgetown community all gathered on Saturday for the annual fundraiser packed with activities suitable for the whole family, including dress-ups, races, bouncy castles and, of course, football. Football fields across WA were taken over by caped crusaders in memory of the Bridgetown boy whose tenacious fight against cancer inspired a fundraising campaign and a commemorative round. Each year, local Auskickers, coaches and volunteers don the cape and cowl on gameday for the commemorative round, in honour of Declan Kane, who died in 2017 at the age of seven after a four-year battle with neuroblastoma. Declan’s parents Kim and Simon launched the event five years ago, raising more than $350,000 for The Kids’ Cancer Project in the years that followed to honour their son’s legacy. Simon, who wears a Batman costume in honour of his son’s favourite superhero, has been blown away by how support for the initiative grew each year. The idea for the Superkids Superheroes fundraiser came about during a conversation between Simon and his friends. Each September, Simon and his friends complete a 10-day, 600km road trip from the Kanes’ hometown to Perth during Childhood Cancer Awareness Month to honour Declan’s life. Simon said he was thrilled with how well the event ran on Saturday and was inspired by the generosity of the football club and the wider community. “All the kids had a great time playing footy in their costumes,” he said. “It was great fun.” The Bridgetown Bulldogs help to organise the SuperKids SuperHeros Round in their town each year, with club members helping to run a friendly Auskick game for children dressed in costume to take part, before a running race and other children’s activities. “A huge thanks to the club for their support — without these much-needed funds research can’t go ahead and without research we cannot find cures and treatments for the kids who are the real superheroes,” Simon said. BFC president Matt Watts said he was incredibly proud of the generosity of the club, its members, supporters and sponsors, and the wider-community. “We’re privileged to partner with the foundation to raise these much needed funds,” he said. “I’ve never seen so many kids at the club — it just goes to show we have a family friendly environment. “I’d like to thank our sponsors and supporters, without whom we could not have put on such an incredible event — special shout-out to Tiny Holly our guest auctioneer who had the crowd smiling and laughing.”