Paul Kelly (Australian rules footballer)

Paul Kelly (born 28 July 1969) is a former Australian rules footballer, winner of the Brownlow Medal and captain of the Sydney Swans for ten seasons. He was and still is known to Swans fans everywhere as "Captain Courageous".

Paul Kelly
Bronze statue of Paul Kelly at the Sydney Cricket Ground
Personal information
Date of birth	(1969-07-28) 28 July 1969
Place of birth	West Wyalong, New South Wales
Original team(s)	Wagga Tigers (RFL)
Height	179 cm (5 ft 10 in)
Weight	83 kg (183 lb)
Position(s)	Midfielder
Playing career1
Years	Club	Games (Goals)
1990–2002	Sydney	234 (200)
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of 2002.
Career highlights
Brownlow Medal: 1995 All-Australian team: 1995, 1996, 1997 Bob Skilton Medal 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997 Sydney captain: 1993-2002 Australian Football Hall of Fame (inducted 2007) Sydney Team of the Century (forward, vice-captain)
Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com

Born and raised in Wagga Wagga, New South Wales, Kelly attended St Michaels School and initially played rugby league for Wagga Brothers but turned to Australian rules football at age 15. Recruited to the AFL by the Swans, Kelly made his debut in 1990 after being the best player in his school, and was appointed captain in 1993 at just 23 years of age, won the Brownlow Medal (the AFL's highest individual honour) in 1995, won club best and fairests in 1992, 1993, 1996 and 1997, All-Australian selection in 1995, 1996 and 1997 (the last two as captain), and the AFL Players Association's Robert Rose Award for Most Courageous Player in 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997 and 2000.

Kelly led the Swans to the AFL Grand Final in 1996—its first since 1945—and was considered one of the best players in the competition during the mid-1990s, but from 1998 onwards was severely hampered by injuries. Kelly retired after 234 AFL games and served as the Swans runner in 2003 before retiring to his farm near Wagga Wagga. His autobiography, Swan Song, was published in 2003 and covers the period until his retirement from football. His No. 14 jumper was retired for 5 years, before it was brought out again, this time to be worn by Craig Bird. The current wearer of the no. 14 jumper at the Swans is co-captain Callum Mills.

In 2005, Kelly was on hand to present the premiership cup to Paul Roos and Barry Hall after the Swans' nailbiting 4-point Grand Final win.

In 2006, he presented the Brownlow Medal to former team mate, Adam Goodes.

He was inducted into the Australian Football Hall of Fame in July, 2007.

Statue of Paul Kelly at the Sydney Cricket Ground

Statistics

Season	Team	No.	Games	Totals							Averages (per game)
				G	B	K	H	D	M	T	G	B	K	H	D	M	T
1990	Sydney	45	10	2	4	48	43	91	15	8	0.2	0.4	4.8	4.3	9.1	1.5	0.8
1991	Sydney	14	20	14	20	219	173	392	52	51	0.7	1.0	11.0	8.7	19.6	2.6	2.6
1992	Sydney	14	22	8	16	310	216	526	63	73	0.4	0.7	14.1	9.8	23.9	2.9	3.3
1993	Sydney	14	20	11	6	269	153	422	55	67	0.6	0.3	13.5	7.7	21.1	2.8	3.4
1994	Sydney	14	18	15	12	226	206	432	70	42	0.8	0.7	12.6	11.4	24.0	3.9	2.3
1995	Sydney	14	22	15	11	285	153	438	68	77	0.7	0.5	13.0	7.0	19.9	3.1	3.5
1996	Sydney	14	25	18	13	371	205	576	128	70	0.7	0.5	14.8	8.2	23.0	5.1	2.8
1997	Sydney	14	23	26	30	376	178	554	100	40	1.1	1.3	16.3	7.7	24.1	4.3	1.7
1998	Sydney	14	16	27	11	229	108	337	64	28	1.7	0.7	14.3	6.8	21.1	4.0	1.8
1999	Sydney	14	21	28	25	267	137	404	86	29	1.3	1.2	12.7	6.5	19.2	4.1	1.4
2000	Sydney	14	8	10	2	67	38	105	31	16	1.3	0.3	8.4	4.8	13.1	3.9	2.0
2001	Sydney	14	11	13	11	117	48	165	52	28	1.2	1.0	10.6	4.4	15.0	4.7	2.5
2002	Sydney	14	18	13	13	200	135	335	61	65	0.7	0.7	11.1	7.5	18.6	3.4	3.6
Career			234	200	174	2984	1793	4777	845	594	0.9	0.7	12.8	7.7	20.4	3.6	2.5

Honours and achievements

Brownlow Medal votes
Season	Votes
1990	—
1991	—
1992	4
1993	11
1994	11
1995	21
1996	14
1997	21
1998	1
1999	7
2000	—
2001	3
2002	10
Total	103
Key:
Green / Bold = Won

• Team
  • McClelland Trophy (Sydney): 1996
• Individual
  • Brownlow Medal: 1995
  • Bob Skilton Medal (Sydney Swans Best & Fairest): 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997
  • All-Australian: 1995, 1996, 1997
  • AFLPA Best Captain Award: 1999
  • AFLPA Robert Rose Most Courageous Player Award: 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 2000
  • Sydney Swans Captain: 1993-2002
  • Sydney Swans Team of the Century - forward pocket (vice-captain)
  • Australian Football Hall of Fame inductee: 2007

External links

• Paul Kelly's profile on the official website of the Sydney Swans
• Paul Kelly's playing statistics from AFL Tables