Tim Kelly (footballer)
| Tim Kelly | |||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Kelly playing for Geelong in August 2018 | |||
| Personal information | |||
| Full name | Timothy Kelly | ||
| Born | 26 July 1994 | ||
| Original team | South Fremantle (WAFL) | ||
| Draft | No. 24, 2017 national draft | ||
| Debut | Round 1, 2018, Geelong vs. Melbourne, at MCG | ||
| Height | 183 cm (6 ft 0 in) | ||
| Weight | 81 kg (179 lb) | ||
| Position | Midfielder | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | West Coast | ||
| Number | 11 | ||
| Playing career1 | |||
| Years | Club | Games (Goals) | |
| 2018–2019 | Geelong | 48 (48) | |
| 2020– | West Coast | 116 (36) | |
| Total | 164 (84) | ||
| Representative team honours | |||
| Years | Team | Games (Goals) | |
| 2025 | Indigenous All-Stars | 1 (1) | |
|
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of the 2025 season. | |||
| Career highlights | |||
| |||
| Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com | |||
Timothy Kelly (born 26 July 1994) is a professional Australian rules footballer playing for the West Coast Eagles in the Australian Football League (AFL). He formerly played for the Geelong Football Club in 2018 and 2019.
Early life and WAFL career
Kelly is from Perth and played his junior football for Palmyra. He has an Indigenous Australian father and a Chilean mother.[1] He made his senior WAFL debut for the South Fremantle Football Club in 2013. He was runner-up in the club's best and fairest in 2014.[2] During the 2017 WAFL season he finished runner-up in the Sandover Medal to Haiden Schloithe.[3] Before being drafted into the AFL, Kelly was an apprentice electrician. His partner/fiancée is Caitlin Miller and they have three sons.[4]
AFL career
Geelong (2018–2019)
Kelly was drafted by Geelong with their second selection and twenty-fourth overall in the 2017 national draft as an over-age draftee.[5] He made his debut in the three-point win against Melbourne at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in the opening round of the 2018 season.[6] At the 2018 AFL Players' Association Awards, he was voted Best First Year Player by fellow players.[7] At the end of the 2018 season, Kelly requested a trade to the West Coast Eagles, but Geelong refused to trade him.[8] In 2019, Kelly made his first All-Australian selection and finished top 5 in the Brownlow Medal, and helped Geelong reach the preliminary final. Following the season, he once again requested a trade to the Eagles, which was completed on 9 October 2019.[9]
West Coast (2020–present)
Kelly joined West Coast on a six-year deal valued at more than $4 million.[9] In 2023, he won the John Worsfold Medal as the Eagles best and fairest player.[10]
Statistics
Updated to the end of the 2025 season.[11]
G
|
Goals | K
|
Kicks | D
|
Disposals | T
|
Tackles |
B
|
Behinds | H
|
Handballs | M
|
Marks |
| Season | Team | No. | Games | Totals | Averages (per game) | Votes | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | B | K | H | D | M | T | G | B | K | H | D | M | T | |||||
| 2018 | Geelong | 11 | 23 | 24 | 16 | 277 | 249 | 526 | 77 | 81 | 1.0 | 0.7 | 12.0 | 10.8 | 22.9 | 3.3 | 3.5 | 13 |
| 2019 | Geelong | 11 | 25 | 24 | 18 | 381 | 254 | 635 | 89 | 106 | 1.0 | 0.7 | 15.2 | 10.2 | 25.4 | 3.6 | 4.2 | 24 |
| 2020[a] | West Coast | 11 | 18 | 5 | 4 | 207 | 153 | 360 | 46 | 76 | 0.3 | 0.2 | 11.5 | 8.5 | 20.0 | 2.6 | 4.2 | 11 |
| 2021 | West Coast | 11 | 19 | 6 | 8 | 245 | 209 | 454 | 62 | 64 | 0.3 | 0.4 | 12.9 | 11.0 | 23.9 | 3.3 | 3.4 | 10 |
| 2022 | West Coast | 11 | 17 | 6 | 5 | 211 | 201 | 412 | 60 | 67 | 0.4 | 0.3 | 12.4 | 11.8 | 24.2 | 3.5 | 3.9 | 3 |
| 2023 | West Coast | 11 | 22 | 10 | 6 | 288 | 333 | 621 | 75 | 104 | 0.5 | 0.3 | 13.1 | 15.1 | 28.2 | 3.4 | 4.7 | 11 |
| 2024 | West Coast | 11 | 20 | 4 | 9 | 240 | 238 | 478 | 55 | 97 | 0.2 | 0.5 | 12.0 | 11.9 | 23.9 | 2.8 | 4.9 | 5 |
| 2025 | West Coast | 11 | 20 | 5 | 8 | 175 | 177 | 352 | 55 | 57 | 0.3 | 0.4 | 8.8 | 8.9 | 17.6 | 2.8 | 2.9 | 0 |
| Career | 164 | 84 | 74 | 2024 | 1814 | 3838 | 519 | 652 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 12.3 | 11.1 | 23.4 | 3.2 | 4.0 | 77 | ||
Notes
- ^ The 2020 season was played with 17 home-and-away matches per team (down from 22) and 16-minute quarters with time on (down from 20-minute quarters with time on) due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
References
- ^ AFL draft: South Fremantle star Tim Kelly ripe for the picking
- ^ Tim Kelly WAFL statistics
- ^ "New recruit Tim Kelly fits the Cats to a T". The Age. 9 March 2018. Archived from the original on 28 October 2022.
- ^ Will it be a case of 'sixth time lucky' for South Fremantle star Tim Kelly at AFL draft?
- ^ Reid, Russell (25 November 2017). "AFL draft 2017: Cats pounce on Tim Kelly, the Bulldog who lit up the WAFL". The West Australian. Seven West Media. Retrieved 26 March 2018.
- ^ Cleary, Mitch (23 March 2018). "'Big Sav' one of three debutants for Cats". AFL.com.au. Telstra Media. Retrieved 26 March 2018.
- ^ Balmer, Matt (30 August 2018). "AFL best first year player 2018: Tim Kelly takes out AFL Players' Association award AFL Matt Balmer". Fox Sports Australia. Retrieved 16 October 2018.
- ^ Staff Writers (5 October 2018). "Geelong midfielder Tim Kelly requests trade to West Coast Eagles". Fox Sports Australia.
- ^ a b "Home, sweet home: Kelly finally an Eagle after mega-trade with Cats". afl.com.au. 9 October 2019. Retrieved 15 June 2025.
- ^ Schmook, Nathan. "Star midfielder claims first Eagles B&F, retiring great in top five". afl.com.au. Retrieved 22 February 2026.
- ^ "Tim Kelly". AFL Tables. Retrieved 10 February 2026.
External links
- Tim Kelly's profile on the official website of the West Coast Eagles
- Tim Kelly's playing statistics from AFL Tables
- Tim Kelly at AustralianFootball.com
- Tim Kelly's WAFL playing statistics at WAFLFootyFacts.net