Sport

6 May, 2026

De Jong goal gets Tigers over the line

A LATE game miracle goal to Brenton De Jong has seen Simpson’s senior footballers defeat Apollo Bay by five points in the round four Colac and District match.

The Tigers were down by five points at half-time and three at the last change before kicking two goals to one in the final term to record an 8.9.57 to 7.10.52 win at the Simpson Recreation Reserve.

“There wouldn’t have been long left, probably a minute or two and we sort of booted it along, it was about 50 metres out, a bit of a contest, it came to ground, Brenton grabbed it, snapped it, and then it just bounced and went through,” Simpson coach Grady Rooke said.

“It wasn’t really looking like it was going that way, and then the footy just made it work and bounced through the goals.”

Rooke said the home crowd was right behind his team at the end of the game.

“We were down by a point at the time, and everyone was just hoping it would go through for a score at least to get us a draw, then all of a sudden it went through for a goal and the crowd went off, which is always good to hear, it’s been pretty good at Simpson with the crowd numbers and support.

“Going into the rooms, they were absolutely full, it’s always fantastic to win at home.”

Rooke was happy to get the win in a tight game.

“It was a scrappy game, it was just one of those days where it was just going to be a fight the whole time.

“We had a lot of skill errors, which we need to work on and which we’ve been trying to work on, that side of the game didn’t really go our way but you’ve gotta take those sort of wins.”

Veteran Brad Salmon was best on ground in his new defensive role.

“Brad was outstanding on the back line, he was definitely the best on.

“He hit a few intercept marks and just controlled it, it was always safe when it was in his hands.”

Jack Hawkes, Lachlan Gass and Jayden Gass were also in the best for the Tigers.

“We swung Jack forward, he played real well up there and he also pinch-hitted in the ruck, which was a different role for him.

“The two Gass boys have just been good so far every week this season.”

De Jong and Jarrod Garth led Simpson’s goal kickers with two each.

This week Simpson face a tough assignment against reigning premier Alvie at Alvie.

“I’ve watched them a couple of times, they’ve probably got the wood over a few teams now but every team is beatable on the day.

“They’re always hard to beat, especially on their home deck, but we’re going in full of hope, hit them hard and see what we can do.”

Apollo Bay was too strong in the reserves fixture, scoring a 12.8.80 to 5.4.34 win.

Samuel Newcombe, Darcy Thorburn and Geordie Ferrari were best for Simpson in the loss, with Darcy Thorburn and Tyson Balcombe kicking two goals each.

The under 15s game saw Simpson win by 11 points, 5.7.37 to 3.8.26.

Best for Simpson were Ben Vogels, Olinto Ferrari and Jyda Randle, with Cooper Beecher kicking two goals.

In the under 12 football, Simpson also had an 11 point win, 6.11.47 to 5.6.36.

Gabriel Capizzi kicked two goals for the junior Tigers, with Jack Vogels, Miles Capizzi, Thomas Vines and Kaiden Teal kicking a goal each.

COLAC AND DISTRICT FOOTBALL NETBALL LEAGUE

ROUND 4
SENIOR FOOTBALL
SIMPSON v APOLLO BAY
Simpson 8.9 (57) defeated Apollo Bay 7.10 (52)

Best Players:
Simpson: Brad Salmon, Jack Hawkes, Lachlan Gass, Jayden Gass, Brenton De Jong, Jayden Rooke
Apollo Bay: Angus Dow, Declan Prigg, Brady Prigg, Joel Cooper, Daniel Clissold, Archer Lennon

Goal Kickers:
Simpson: Brenton De Jong 2, Jarrod Garth 2, Jack Hawkes, Thomas Leishman, Cody Mason, Brodie Neale
Apollo Bay: Ashton Harrison 2, Mitchell Keane 2, Joel Cooper, Tristan Smith, Oskar Walter

Simpson’s A grade netballers returned to the winners list with a percentage boosting 64-26 win.

“It’s going to be a close top five this year, we discussed it a little bit beforehand, that if we could get the lead, we needed to try and get it out as much as possible,” Simpson coach Eliza Duynhoven said.

“It was nice to pull through and have a good win after last week’s loss.”

Duynhoven was pleased with the Tigers increasing their lead at each change.

“We were kind of steady in the first half and then at half time we said we can play a bit better netball than this, and the girls came out firing the second half, it was really good to see.

“It was a nice game to be able to implement so many things that we’ve been working towards at training, so it was really nice to see those come to play over the weekend.

“It was definitely one of those games that you can kind of step back and really try everything you’ve been working towards.”

Defender Holly Duynhoven was the Tigers best in the win.

“Holly just steadied it down there, really took control down that end and just calmed it for all of them.

“We’ve got Claire Blain stepping in as well in defence, so she’s been really good working with Claire, it’s been really good to see.”

Amy Pemberton continued her great start to the season, also named in the best.

“Amy is the puzzle piece to that mid-court, she just helps bring it down so much, and just her calmness and her netball knowledge and skill.

“You can tell she’s very present when she’s on the court.”

Duynhoven, with 33 goals, and Shelby Cameron with 28 combined well under the ring for Simpson.

“Shelbs has stepped into attack this year, which has been really good.

“It's been nice to have a new combination, we’ll just continue to work and build that combination up.”

The B grade game saw Simpson have a convincing 64-17 win.

Jessie Harding, Ella Arndell and Lucy De Jong were best for Simpson in the win, with Harding shooting 35 goals and Georgia Arndell 25.

Simpson’s C grade team had a 39-28 win.

Kayla Hallyburton, Sienna Chivell and Rachael Duynhoven were best for the Tigers, with Duynhoven scoring 23 goals and Hallyburton 15.

There was no D grade game with Apollo Bay not fielding a team in that grade.

The 17 and under game saw Simpson score a 29-27 win.

Best for the Tigers were Amelia Daniels, Gabrielle Montano and Anna Robb with Kustom Robertson scoring 18 goals.

The 15 and under game saw Apollo Bay win 29-24.

Courtney Blain, Keisha McVilly and Grace Bowman were best for Simpson, with Keisha McVilly shooting 15 goals.

The 13 and under game saw Simpson make it three wins a row with a strong 31-4 victory.

Kensie Austin, Ayla Crole and Lotus Rothery were Simpson’s best in the win, with Nyah Ford scoring 13 goals, Mia Arndell nine and Peyton Robertson eight.

COLAC AND DISTRICT FOOTBALL NETBALL LEAGUE

ROUND 4
OPEN NETBALL
SIMPSON v APOLLO BAY
Simpson 64 defeated Apollo Bay 26

Best Players:
Simpson: Holly Duynhoven, Amy Pemberton, Shelby Cameron
Apollo Bay: Josie Lennon, Hannah McDonald, Chloe Howell

Goal Scorers:
Simpson: Eliza Duynhoven 33, Shelby Cameron 28, Emily Rooke 3
Apollo Bay: Eleanor Deppeler 19, Katherine Speirs 5, Tayla Bertrand 2