Football
6 May, 2026
Kees wins third straight
Kalkee’s senior football side has continued their strong start to the season, producing a convincing win over Rupanyup in round four of the Horsham District Football Netball League on Saturday May 2.
Playing at home, the Kees kicked 13.12 (90) to Rupanyup’s 4.8 (32).
The home side began strongly, dominating possession to create several inside 50s.
Paddy Mills kicked the first major of the game, with forward Jye Walter adding two late-quarter goals to give Kalkee a 30-1 lead.
Sam Kamstra got the first goal for the Panthers early in the second quarter but Kalkee still managed to maintain control despite having the wind disadvantage.
A late Ryan Timmins goal kept the Panthers within distance as the home side led 44-15 at half-time.
But Kalkee put the game to bed in the third quarter, kicking six goals while nullifying Rupanyup’s opportunities to hold an 83-17 lead at the final break.
A low-scoring final quarter saw the Kees finish as 58-point victors.
Andy Devereaux, Ben Lawson, Matt Nield and Jye Walter each kicked two goals for Kalkee, with Sam Kamstra leading Rupanyup with two.
Matt Magee had a strong game in Kalkee’s backline, with Paddy Mills, Luke Byrne and Will Drummond also among the key contributors in the victory.
Adrian Rose, Daniel Weetra, and Riley and Blake Downer were among the best on field for the Panthers.
Kalkee coach Clint Burdett said he was pleased with how the team performed considering how the conditions changed throughout the game.
“I thought we put in a good four-quarter effort,” Burdett said.
“We still managed to move the footy the way we wanted to, even in tough wind conditions.
“We still scored going into the breeze, which was achievable by moving the footy how we wanted to play.”
Despite Rupanyup putting extra attention on forward Tanner Smith, the Kees coach said it opened up opportunities elsewhere.
“They often put two or three blokes on Tanner, which is probably going to happen a lot of weeks anyway, and we've worked out some strategies to get around that,” Burdett said.
“We were able to open up the forward line and run onto it.
“Instead of just kicking it along to Tanner, we kicked it over the top and used our leg speed to kick a couple of goals going into the breeze, so that made it a lot easier for us.”
Burdett also credited his side’s backline, led by Matt Magee.
“It's starting to piece together slowly,” he said.
“Our back six have been really good all year and Matty Magee was fantastic on Saturday.
"He just controls the game and reads the play well.
“And when we're coming out of the backline, we're looking to move the footy on either side of the ground, and I think that opens us up and it gives us a good opportunity to score up forward.”