Football
28 April, 2026
Smith kicks 10 as Kees dominate Tigers
Tanner Smith continued his incredible start to the season, kicking 10 goals to help Kalkee’s senior football side defeat Pimpinio in round three of the Horsham District Football Netball League on Sunday, April 26.
Playing at Pimpinio, the Kees kicked 18.12 (120) to the Tigers’ 6.6 (42).
The home side took control early, getting the better of Kalkee around the contest.
A Nick Groves goal just before the quarter-time siren saw Pimpinio take a 26-13 lead.
Having scored the opening two goals, an additional two from Tanner Smith in the second quarter helped the Kees reduce the deficit to 34-30 at halftime.
A Matt Nield goal partway into the third quarter saw the Kees take the lead and kick an additional four goals to go up 61-35 at three-quarter time.
Except for a solitary goal for Pimpinio from Link Smith, Kalkee took complete control of the game, kicking nine final-quarter goals to win by 78.
Along with Smith’s 10, Matt Nield and Isaiah Adams each kicked two goals for Kalkee, while Nick Groves booted two for the Tigers.
Along with the goal kickers, midfielders Will Drummond and Paddy Mills were standouts for the Kees.
For Pimpinio, Dylan Thomas, Austin Simpson, Link Smith and Cullen Williams were among the best on ground.
Kalkee coach Clint Burdett was pleased with how the side minimised their mistakes as the game progressed, after Pimpinio pressured them early.
“Pimpinio were really good in the first half and restricted us with a lot of pressure, and then we broke them open in that second half, and we played some really, really good footy,” he said.
“Our attack of the footy was better in the second half, and we were able to be a lot cleaner.
“Pimpinio’s pressure probably dropped off a little bit, and we started using the footy better and weren’t making as many mistakes.
“Fortunately for us, we moved the footy really quickly and opened up our forward line.”
While acknowledging Smith’s outstanding 10-goal performance, the Kalkee coach credited midfielders Will Drummond and Paddy Mills for their impact all game.
“Two of our best players on the ground were Will Drummond and Paddy Mills,” Burdett said.
“They had a terrific four-quarter game, I thought, and they were the engine room that really set us up in that second half.
“Obviously, Tanner was great up forward. Even the likes of Dylan Seymour, who came in and employed a lot of pressure.
“His role was just to harass and chase, and for a young kid, he did his job as well.”
Burdett added that it was pleasing to see the side’s game plan come to fruition this early in the season.
“We've got a system and a structure that we've been training all preseason to get right, and I think in the second half it clicked a little bit for us,” he said.
“We knew it was gonna take time, and being down by four points at halftime, there was no panic stations or anything.
“A lot of it was to just keep believing in our process, and we did open up the game on our terms in that second half.”