Mickey Keenan

What is it about Newry and seemingly ageless ‘keepers. Pat Jennings played in a World Cup at 41, but Mickey Keenan surpassed even that by playing in the Champions’ League at 46…

Name: Michael Keenan
Born: 5 April 1956, Newry
Height: 
Weight: 
Position: Goalkeeper

Representative Honours: Northern Ireland Under-18; Irish League: 7 Caps (1982-1992).
Club Honours: (with Portadown) Irish League Champion 1989/90, 1990/91, 1995/96, 2001/02; Irish Cup Winner 1990/91, Runner-Up 1989/90, 2001/02; Irish League Cup Winner 1995/96; Gold Cup Winner 1992/93; Ulster Cup Winner 1990/91; Floodlit Cup Winner 1990/91, 1992/93; Mid-Ulster Cup Winner.
Awards: Ulster Player of the Year 2002.

Club Career:

Teams	Seasons	Signed	Fee	League	FA Cup	FL Cup	Europe	Other
Newry Town	-	-	Youth	-	-	-	-	-
Oldham Athletic	74/75-77/78	Sep-74	-	0/0	-	-	-	-
Newry Town	-	-78	-	-	-	-	-	-
Portadown	81/82-97/98	-81	£1,500	-	-	-	10/0	-
Ards	98/99	Jul-98	-	19/0	2/0	1/0	-	12/0
Portadown	99/00-02/03	Aug-99	-	67/0	-	-	2/0	-
Lisburn.Distillery	03/04	Aug-03	-	1/0	-	2/0	-	1/0
TOTALS	-	£-		-	-	-	-	-

Biography:
The similarities between Mickey Keenan and Pat Jennings were endless. They were of course both classy goalkeepers with unorthodox styles, softly-spoken which belied their big frames, they came from the same town and same club, and neither knew when to quit. Like Jennings, an admitted hero of Keenan’s, he won Northern Ireland Youth caps while with Newry Town, and like Jennings he was given an early chance in English football – he signed for Oldham Athletic when he moved to Manchester to study as a teacher.

When his teacher training was completed Keenan returned to Newry Town where he continued to draw the attentions of some big clubs. Newry’s goal however was senior status, and Keenan wanted to be part of that. He finally gave up on his dream of Irish League football with Newry in 1981 leaving the ‘B’ Division behind to sign for Portadown – two years later Newry were elected to the Irish League proper.

It didn’t take Keenan long to evolve from the top ‘keeper in intermediate football to one of the top ‘keepers in the senior game. By the end of his first season with Portadown he had been capped by the Irish League, coming on as substitute for George Dunlop in a 3-3 draw with OFK Belgrade of the Yugoslav League. Throughout the 1980s he plugged the gap at the back for the thoroughly mid-table Portadown. His only reward for his sterling service was a couple of Mid-Ulster Cup winner’s medals and final appearances in the Gold Cup and League Cup in 1987/88 and 1988/89 respectively. Suddenly, out of nowhere, Ronnie McFaul’s Portadown clicked, and Mickey Keenan at the age of 34 had his first major gong, an Irish League winner’s medal.

Billy Bingham rewarded Keenan’s excellent form in keeping over twenty clean sheets during that Championship winning season – Portadown’s first ever – with an international call-up in 1990. He further cemented his credentials as the Irish League’s best last line of defence with further appearances for the Irish League in their centenary year against the League of Ireland, Manchester United and the Football League. Portadown confirmed their place in the upper echelons of the local game with an Irish League and Cup ‘double’ in 1991 throwing in the Ulster and Floodlit Cups for good measure only for arch-rivals Glenavon to claim bragging rights with wins in the Gold and Mid-Ulster Cups.

The honours continued to come thick and fast for Keenan through the mid-90s, he won further Irish League caps and helped keep Portadown’s trophy cabinet bulging. By 1996, when Portadown won the inaugural Irish Premier League title, his place had been claimed by Timothy Dalton, and in July 1998 he signed for Ards. He lasted just a season in North-Down before announcing his retirement – it was a hasty announcement.

In August 1999 Keenan re-signed for Portadown, still in “semi-retirement”, with the intention of acting as goalkeeping cover. In his absence Portadown had just survived relegation by a two-point margin. True to his word his first campaign back at Shamrock Park brought just six League appearances. His next season saw 24 Irish League outings, and 2002, when Portadown won their fourth Irish League title, 34. His performances “in semi-retirement” brought Keenan the accolade of Ulster Footballer of Year.

With the Gibson Cup came qualification for the Champions’ League preliminary rounds and Keenan had the honour, at 46 years and three months, of becoming the oldest player ever to feature in that competition. The tie, against Belarus side Belshina Bobruisk ended in a 3-2 aggregate defeat and again Keenan was displaced from the side by a younger number one, Davy Wells. Keenan finally retired (for good) at the end of the 2003/04 season after a handful of appearances for Distillery – he was 48 years-old.

Currently Mickey Keenan is goalkeeping coach at Newry City.

Irish League Representative Appearance Details:
16-02-1982 OKF Belgrade........ H D 3-3 sub
06-03-1989 Hibernian FC........ A L 1-2 sub
07-05-1990 League of Ireland... H L 0-1
11-08-1990 Manchester United FC H L 0-3
13-09-1990 Football League..... H D 1-1
19-11-1991 League of Ireland... A W 2-0
04-08-1992 Everton FC.......... H L 0-1

Summary: 5(2)/0. Won 1, Drew 2, Lost 4.

Jack Kennedy

Name: John Kennedy
Born: 4 September 1939, Newtownards
Height: 6.03 ft
Weight: 12.07 st
Position: Goalkeeper

Representative Honours: Ireland: 7 Amateur Caps (1961-1965); Great Britain Olympic Team; Irish League: 3 Caps (1964).
Club Honours: (with Distillery) Irish League Champion 1962/63; Irish Cup Runner-Up 1962/63; City Cup Winner 1959/60, 1962/63; Co. Antrim Shield Winner 1963/64, Runner-Up 1957/58.

Club Career:

Teams	Seasons	Signed	Fee	League	FA Cup	FL Cup	Europe	Other
Distillery	57/58-64/65	1957	Amateur	241(0)/0	-	-	2(0)/0	-
Celtic	64/65-66/67	Mar-65	£5,000	0(0)/0	-	1(0)/0	-	-
Detroit.Cougars	1967	May-67	Guest	11(1)/0	(United Soccer Association)
Lincoln City	67/68-73/74	Jul-67	Free	251(0)/0	10(0)/0	16(0)/0	-	1(0)/0
Lincoln United	-	-	Free	-	(Yorkshire League)
TOTALS	-	£5,000		503(1)/1	10(0)/0	17(0)/0	2(0)/0	1(0)/0

Biography:
Jack Kennedy made his debut in senior football in the 1958 Co. Antrim Shield semi-final and his second appearance as Distillery lost 3-1 to Linfield in the final. He spent eight seasons as The Whites regular goalkeeper, claiming winners medals in the League, City Cup (twice) and Shield. He also appeared in a 2-1 Irish Cup final defeat by Linfield in 1963 as Distillery were denied the "Double".

In 1961, Kennedy claimed his first major representative honour, playing alongside club-mate John Anderson for Ireland Amateurs in a 4-1 defeat by Wales in Portmadoc. He battled for his place in the Amateur international side for the next four years with the likes of Iam McFaul also staking a claim. During 1964 Kennedy played in all of the Irish League's representative fixtures. In 1964 he also appeared for Great Britain in a two-legged Olympic qualifier against Greece.

On 10th March 1965 Kennedy signed his first professional contract, with Distillery receiving a £5,000 fee from Celtic for his signature. He spent two years at Parkhead, only once appearing for the firstteam - in a 4-0 League Cup win over Raith Rovers in September 1965. He was released in the summer of 1967, joining up with the Glentoran squad that travelled to the USA to play as the Detroit Cougars.

On his return from America, Kennedy joined Lincoln City and was a popular player for The Imps for seven seasons, including being named as the club's Player of the Season in 1970. Throughout his time with Lincoln, he combined playing with teaching at local schools and remained in the area after retiring from the game.

RedImps

Ireland Amateur Cap Details:
14-01-1961 Wales... A L 1-4
18-02-1961 Scotland H D 3-3
28-09-1963 England. H W 2-1
11-01-1964 Wales... H D 2-2
08-02-1964 Scotland A D 2-2
26-09-1964 England. A L 1-2
16-01-1965 Wales... A D 1-1

Summary: 7/0. Won 1, Drew 4, Lost 2.

Irish League Representative Appearance Details:
17-03-1964 League of Ireland A L 2-4
15-04-1964 League of Ireland H D 2-2
28-10-1964 Football League.. H L 0-4

Summary: 3/0. Won 0, Drew 1, Lost 2.

Billy Kee

Name: Billy Rodney Kee
Born: 1 December 1990, Leicester (England)
Height: 5.09 ft
Weight: 11.04 st
Position: Forward

Representative Honours: Northern Ireland: 10 Under-21 Caps / 3 Goals (2009-2012), 8 Under-19 Caps/ 4 Goals.
Awards: EFL League Two Player of Season 2017/18; EFL Team of the Season 2017/18; PFA League Two Team of the Year 2017/18; League Two Player of the Month Nov-2011.

Club Career:
Teams............. --Seasons-- Signed -Fee- -League-- FA Cup FL Cup Other
Leicester City ... 08/09-09/10 . 2006 Youth .0 (0)/ 0
Accrington Stanley 09/10 ..... Jul-09 .Loan 15(22)/ 9 1(2)/0 1(1)/0 2(0)/0
Torquay United ... 10/11-11/12 Jun-10 .Free 18 (6)/ 9 1(3)/1 1(0)/0 4(1)/0

Burton Albion .... 11/12-14/15 Aug-11 Undis 70(29)/39 4(3)/2 2(3)/1 3(3)/0
Scunthorpe United. 14/15 ..... Aug-14 Undis .0(12)/ 0 1(1)/0 ...... 0(2)/0 
Mansfield Town ... 14/15 ..... Jan-15 .Loan .8 (5)/ 2
Accrington Stanley 15/16- date Jun-15 .Free

Biography:
A young stocky striker, Billy Kee spent 2009/10 on loan at Accrington Stanley from Leicester City. He was part of the Northern Ireland side that claimed the 2009 Milk Cup Elite title and in September 2009, still just eighteen, he was called into the senior Northern Ireland squad. He was disappointed to be released by Leicester in May 2010 but quickly signed for Torquay United. In August 2011 he scored his first goals at  Under-21international level, a virtuoso hattrick against the Faroe Islands, so becoming the first Northern Ireland player to score three in a match at that level.  Early in the 2011/12 season Kee left Torquay for personal reasons. He move closer to "home" by joining Burton Albion for a fee believed to be around £20,000 and a startling run of goalscoring form saw him crowned Football League Young Player of the Month for October. In August 2014 he moved on to Scunthorpe for a fee believed to be around £250,000, earning Torquay a further £80,000 through a sell on clause. He failed to start a league game or score a goal for the Iron and joined Mansfield on a three-month loan deal mid-season.

Irish FA
Wikipedia
Accrington Stanley

Northern Ireland Under-21 Cap Details:
04-09-2009 Czech Republic A L 0-2 ECQ
13-10-2009 Iceland....... A L 1-2 ECQ
13-11-2009 Germany....... H D 1-1 ECQ
17-11-2009 Czech Republic H L 1-2 ECQ
02-03-2010 San Marino.... A W 3-0 ECQ
17-11-2010 Scotland ..... A L 1-3 FR
10-08-2011 San Marino ... H W 4-0 ECQ 3 goals
02-09-2011 Serbia ....... A L 0-1 ECQ
07-09-2012 FYRo Macedonia H L 1-3 ECQ
10-09-2012 Denmark ...... A L 0-3 ECQ sub

Summary: 9(1)/3. Won 2, Drew 1, Lost 7.

Picture courtesy of Roy Cathcart

Norman Kelly

Name: Norman Kelly
Born: 10 October 1970, Belfast
Height: 5.09 ft
Weight: 12.00 st
Position: Midfielder

Representative Honours: Northern Ireland: 1 Under-21 Cap (1990), Under-19, Under-18.
Club Honours: (with Linfield) Irish League Champion 1999/00, 2000/01; Irish Cup Winner 2001/02, Runner-Up 1999/00.

Club Career:
Teams........... --Seasons-- Signed -Fee- --League-- FA Cup FL Cup Europe Other
Glentoran ......................... Youth ..0 (0)/ 0
Oldham Athletic. 87/88-89/90 Jul-87 Youth ..0 (2)/ 0 .................... 0(1)/0
Wigan Athletic.. 89/90 ..... Oct-89 .Loan ..0 (4)/ 0
Dunfermline Ath. 90/91-92/93 Mar-91 ...... 13 (1)/ 0
Brunei ..................... May-93
Raith Rovers ... 93/94 ..... Dec-93 ....... 1 (3)/ 0
Glenavon ....... 93/94 ..... Dec-93 ....... 4 (0)/ 2 .................... 1(0)/0
Glentoran ...... 94/95 ..... Oct-94 ....... 5 (0)/ 2 .................... 3(0)/0
IFL Stroustead ..................................... (Sweden)
Malaysia
Canberra Cosmos .95/96-98/99 ............. 79 (-)/ 9 (Australia)
Linfield ....... 99/00-01/02 Jul-99 ...... 51(12)/ 4 ?(?)/? ?(?)/? 5(1)/0
Glenavon ....... 02/03 ..... Jul-02 ....... 6 (4)/ 1 ...... 5(0)/0
Crusaders ...... 02/03 ..... Jan-03 ...... 11 (0)/ 0 3(0)/0

Biography:
Capped as an Under-21, the closest Norman Kelly got to a full cap was when he was on the bench for a famous 1-1 draw with Germany in 1992.

In December 2008 Kelly returned to Linfield as a member of their scouting staff. From July 2010 to December 2011 he was firstteam coach at Larne before taking on a similar role at Ballymena under Glenn Ferguson. He left the Showgrounds when Ferguson was sacked in March 2016 and was appointed coach at Glenavon just a few weeks later, but left at the end of the season.

More to follow.

Northern Ireland Under-21 Cap Details:
03-04-1990 Israel H W 2-1 FR sub

Summary: 0(1)/0. Won 1, Drew 0, Lost 0.

Darren Kelly

Name: Darren Kelly
Born: 30 June 1979, Londonderry
Height: 6.01 ft
Weight: 12.10 st
Position: Defender

Representative Honours: Northern Ireland: 11 Under-21 Caps (2000-2001).
Club Honours: (with Portadown) Irish Cup Winner 2004/05, Runner-Up 2009/10.

Club Career:

Teams	Seasons	Signed	Fee	League	FA.Cup	FL.Cup	Europe	Other
Trojans	-	-	Youth	-	-	-	-	-
Derry City	95/96-01/02	-	Youth	-	-	-	-	-
Carlisle United	02/03-03/04	Aug-02	£100k	39 (3)/ 2	2(0)/0	1(1)/0	-	8(0)/0
Portadown	04/05-05/06	Aug-04	Free	52 (0)/ 9	-	-	2(0)/0	-
Derry City	2006 - 2007	Jul-06	Free	29 (-)/ 2	-	-	7(0)/1	-
Kilmarnock	-	Jul-07	Trial	0 (0)/ 0	-	-	-	-
York City	07/08-08/09	Aug-07	Undisc.	33 (4)/ 2	1(0)/0	-	-	2(0)/0
Portadown	09/10-10/11	May-09	Free	50 (3)/ 3	-	-	3(0)/0	-
Stalybridge Celtic	10/11	Jan-11	-	0 (0)/ 0	(Conference North)
Garforth Town	10/11	Feb-11	-	-	(Northern Premier League)
Frickley Athletic	12/13	Jul-12	-	-	(Northern Premier League)
Scarborough Ath.	10/11-12/13	Jan-13	-	-	(Northern Counties East League)
TOTALS	-	£100k		203(10)/18	3(0)/0	1(1)/0	12(0)/1	10(0)/0

Biography:
Darren Kelly's second spell at Portadown came to a close in January 2011 as he was forced to quit the club due to work commitments in England where he lives. He joined Conference North side Stalybridge Celtic a week later.

Kelly combined playing for Scarborough Athletic with coaching duties at York City before joining Sunderland's academy in January 2015.

In May 2015 he was appointed manager at Oldham but was sacked on 13th September due to a run of bad results. He was then manager of FC Halifax Town from 1st October until 17th November when sacked due to poor results.

More to follow.

Wikipedia

Northern Ireland Under-21 Cap Details:
28-03-2000 Malta......... A W 2-1 FR
02-06-2000 Wales......... H D 2-2 ITT
01-09-2000 Malta......... H D 1-1 ECQ
10-10-2000 Iceland....... A W 5-2 ECQ sub
23-03-2001 Czech Republic H L 0-2 ECQ
27-03-2001 Bulgaria...... A L 0-2 ECQ
01-06-2001 Bulgaria...... H D 1-1 ECQ
05-06-2001 Czech Republic A L 0-4 ECQ
31-08-2001 Denmark....... A L 0-2 ECQ
04-09-2001 Iceland....... H L 1-3 ECQ
05-10-2001 Malta......... A D 2-2 ECQ

Summary: 10(1)/0. Won 2, Drew 4, Lost 5.

Ned Kerr

Name: Edward Kerr
Position: Outside-Left

Representative Honours: Ireland: 1 “Victory” Cap (1919).
Club Honours: (with Belfast Celtic) Irish League Champion; Irish Cup Runner-Up 1914/15; Belfast & District (War-Time) League Champion 1918/19.

Club Career:
Belfast Celtic

Biography:
Ned “Smiler” Kerr, a man who sported an almost permanent grin, was a superbly gifted footballer, described as “an artist whose canvas was the field”. He was famed for goading defenders, not content with beating them once he would often stop, allow them to catch up, and then beat them again.

With Belfast Celtic Kerr won League titles in both peace and war-time, starring on either wing. He also played in Irish Cup and Co. Antrim Shield finals during his time at Paradise, though never tasted success in either competition.

In April 1919 Kerr was selected at outside-left for the Victory International against Scotland, replacing Glentoran’s William Moore. In a tight match there was little attacking play as the 0-0 scoreline reflected. He was the only player selected for either of the 1919 “Victory” matches that never gained Full international recognition.

Victory Cap Details:
19-04-1919 Scotland H D 0-0 VI

Summary: 1/0. Won 0, Drew 1, Lost 0.