John James Kennedy Sr. (29 December 192824 June 2020) was an Australian rules footballer who played for the

Hawthorn Football Club The Hawthorn Football Club, nicknamed the Hawks, is a professional Australian rules football club based in Mulgrave, Victoria, that competes in the Australian Football League (AFL). The club was founded in 1902 in the inner-east suburb of Hawt ...

and coached Hawthorn and the North Melbourne Football Club in the

Victorian Football League The Victorian Football League (VFL) is an Australian rules football league in Australia serving as one of the second-tier regional semi-professional competitions which sit underneath the fully professional Australian Football League (AFL). It ...

(VFL). He coached Hawthorn to premierships in 1961, 1971, and 1976.

Early life/playing career

Kennedy was born in

Camberwell, Victoria Camberwell is a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 9 km east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Boroondara local government area. Camberwell recorded a population of 21,965 at the 2021 census. ...

, on 29 December 1928. In 1950, he joined the

as a ruckman. Over the next ten years, he played 164 games for Hawthorn, winning the club's Best and Fairest award four times (in 1950–1952, and 1954) and serving as captain from 1955 until his retirement in 1959.

Coaching career

Kennedy received a rushed introduction to coaching in

1957 1957 ( MCMLVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar, the 1957th year of the Common Era (CE) and ''Anno Domini'' (AD) designations, the 957th year of the 2nd millennium, the 57th year of the 20th century, and the 8th year ...

when regular coach Jack Hale was involved in a vehicle accident on the way to

Glenferrie Oval Glenferrie Oval is an Australian rules football stadium located in Hawthorn, a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It is the historic home of, and is synonymous with, the Hawthorn Football Club, who played there from 1903 and as a VFL/AFL ...

and missed the Round 11 match. He took over permanently as Hawthorn coach for the 1960 season and led the team to their first premiership in 1961. Following a

Grand Final Primarily in Australian sports, a grand final (sometimes colloquially abbreviated to "grannie") is a game that decides a sports league's premiership (or championship) winning team, i.e. the conclusive game of a finals (or play-off) series. S ...

defeat to Geelong in 1963, he was forced to step down as coach when the Victorian Education Department offered him a job as a school principal in Stawell. Hawthorn's poor on-field performance over the next few years saw him recalled to the role in 1967. He coached Hawthorn to premierships in 1971 and 1976 and a Grand Final loss in 1975. He stepped down as coach again in 1976, in all coaching Hawthorn to three premierships from five Grand Finals. In 1985, Kennedy became the coach of the North Melbourne Football Club, and coached the club until

1989 File:1989 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Cypress structure collapses as a result of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, killing motorists below; The proposal document for the World Wide Web is submitted; The Exxon Valdez oil tanker runs ...

; his best result with North Melbourne was fourth in 1985. In total he coached for 411 games, winning 236, losing 170, and drawing five.

Statistics

Coaching statistics

, - ,

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1960 It is also known as the "Year of Africa" because of major events—particularly the independence of seventeen African nations—that focused global attention on the continent and intensified feelings of Pan-Africanism. Events January * Jan ...

, , , 18 , , 11 , , 7 , , 0 , , 61.1% , , 5 , , 12 , - , bgcolor=F0E68C ,

1961 Events January * January 3 ** United States President Dwight D. Eisenhower announces that the United States has severed diplomatic and consular relations with Cuba (Cuba–United States relations are restored in 2015). ** Aero Flight 311 (K ...

^# , , , 20 , , 16 , , 4 , , 0 , , 80.0% , , 1 , , 12 , - ,

1962 Events January * January 1 – Western Samoa becomes independent from New Zealand. * January 3 – Pope John XXIII excommunicates Fidel Castro for preaching communism. * January 8 – Harmelen train disaster: 93 die in the wor ...

, , , 18 , , 5 , , 13 , , 0 , , 38.5% , , 9 , , 12 , - ,

1963 Events January * January 1 – Bogle–Chandler case: Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation scientist Dr. Gilbert Bogle and Mrs. Margaret Chandler are found dead (presumed poisoned), in bushland near the Lane Co ...

, , , 21 , , 14 , , 6 , , 1 , , 70.0% , , 1 , , 12 , - ,

1967 Events January * January 1 – Canada begins a year-long celebration of the 100th anniversary of Confederation, featuring the Expo 67 World's Fair. * January 5 ** Spain and Romania sign an agreement in Paris, establishing full consular and ...

, , , 18 , , 5 , , 13 , , 0 , , 38.5% , , 10 , , 12 , - ,

1968 The year was highlighted by protests and other unrests that occurred worldwide. Events January–February * January 5 – " Prague Spring": Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia. * Janu ...

, , , 20 , , 9 , , 10 , , 1 , , 45.0% , , 6 , , 12 , - ,

1969 This year is notable for Apollo 11's first landing on the moon. Events January * January 4 – The Government of Spain hands over Ifni to Morocco. * January 5 **Ariana Afghan Airlines Flight 701 crashes into a house on its approach to ...

, , , 20 , , 13 , , 7 , , 0 , , 65.0% , , 5 , , 12 , - ,

1970 Events January * January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC. * January 5 – The 7.1 Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity of X (''Extreme''). Between 10,000 and ...

, , , 22 , , 10 , , 12 , , 0 , , 45.5% , , 8 , , 12 , - , bgcolor=F0E68C , 1971^# , , , 24 , , 21 , , 3 , , 0 , , 87.5% , , 1 , , 12 , - ,

1972 Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using mean solar tim ...

, , , 22 , , 13 , , 9 , , 0 , , 59.1% , , 6 , , 12 , - ,

1973 Events January * January 1 - The United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Denmark 1973 enlargement of the European Communities, enter the European Economic Community, which later becomes the European Union. * January 15 – Vietnam War: ...

, , , 22 , , 11 , , 11 , , 0 , , 50.0% , , 7 , , 12 , - , 1974 , , , 25 , , 16 , , 9 , , 0 , , 64.0% , , 3 , , 12 , - ,

1975 It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe. Events January * January 1 - Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...

, , , 24 , , 18 , , 6 , , 0 , , 75.0% , , 1 , , 12 , - , bgcolor=F0E68C ,

1976 Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 11 – The 1976 ...

^# , , , 25 , , 19 , , 6 , , 0 , , 76.0% , , 2 , , 12 , - ,

1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a ...

, , , 24 , , 14 , , 9 , , 1 , , 58.3% , , 5 , , 12 , - ,

1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 **Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. **Spain and Portugal enter ...

, , , 22 , , 12 , , 10 , , 0 , , 54.5% , , 7 , , 12 , - ,

1987 File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, ...

, , , 23 , , 13 , , 9 , , 1 , , 56.5% , , 4 , , 14 , - ,

1988 File:1988 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The oil platform Piper Alpha explodes and collapses in the North Sea, killing 165 workers; The USS Vincennes (CG-49) mistakenly shoots down Iran Air Flight 655; Australia celebrates its Bicenten ...

, , , 22 , , 7 , , 14 , , 1 , , 31.8% , , 11 , , 14 , - ,

, , , 22 , , 9 , , 13 , , 0 , , 40.9% , , 9 , , 14 , - class=sortbottom ! colspan=2 , Career totals ! 412 !! 236 !! 171 !! 5 !! 57.3% !! colspan=2 ,

Honours and achievements

Playing

Individual * 4× Hawthorn Best and Fairest: 1950, 1951, 1952, 1954 * Hawthorn captain: 1955–1959

Coaching

Team * 3× VFL Premiership coach ():

, 1971,

* 4× Minor premiership ():

, 1971,

* 2× Night Series premiership ():

Individual * 3× Jock McHale Medal:

, 1971,

Hawthorn Hawthorn or Hawthorns may refer to: Plants * '' Crataegus'' (hawthorn), a large genus of shrubs and trees in the family Rosaceae * ''Rhaphiolepis'' (hawthorn), a genus of about 15 species of evergreen shrubs and small trees in the family Rosace ...

Team of the Century – Coach

Hall of Fame/Life membership

* Australian Football Hall of Fame – Legend status *

Hall of Fame – Legend status *

life member

Legacy

As a player, Kennedy was renowned for his toughness and skill. As a coach, he had a similar reputation for toughness but also for oratory. He was notorious for borrowing ideas from any source he thought would inspire the players, but it was his passion rather than his quotations that he was best known for. In the

1975 VFL Grand Final The 1975 VFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football game contested between the North Melbourne Football Club and the Hawthorn Football Club, held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne on 27 September 1975. It was the 78th annual Gra ...

against North Melbourne, his exhortation to the Hawthorn players at half-time was: "At least ''do'' something! ''Do!'' Don't think, Mick! Don't hope; ''do!'' At least you can come off and say, 'I did this, I shepherded, I played on. At least I did something.'" Despite this, his team still lost convincingly. He was famous for his battered brown overcoat, which is now on display at the Hawthorn Football Club. He was an inaugural inductee into the Australian Football Hall of Fame and was inducted into the

Sport Australia Hall of Fame The Sport Australia Hall of Fame was established on 10 December 1985 to recognise the achievements of Australian sportsmen and sportswomen. The inaugural induction included 120 members with Sir Don Bradman as the first inductee and Dawn Fraser th ...

in 1999. His son John Kennedy Jr., also played for the Hawks, playing eight matches against Kangaroo teams coached by his father. Kennedy's grandson Josh Kennedy was recruited by

under the father/son rule in the

2006 AFL Draft The 2006 AFL draft is a recent national draft of the Australian Football League. The AFL draft is the annual draft of talented players by Australian rules football teams that participate in the main competition of that sport, the Australian Foot ...

, but played most of his career with the Sydney Swans. On 1 June 2020, John Kennedy Sr. became the 29th legend of the Australian Football Hall of Fame. AFL Commission Chairman Richard Goyder said: "In the Australian Football Hall of Fame, our Legends stand above our greats and, on behalf of the selectors, it is my great honour to declare John Kennedy was elected as a Legend, recognising his six-decade contribution to our game."

Statue

In honour of Kennedy's 80th birthday, a statue of him overlooking the Hawthorns'

Waverley Park Waverley Park (also and originally called VFL Park) was an Australian rules football stadium in Mulgrave, Victoria, Australia. For most of its history, its purpose was as a neutral venue and used by all Victorian-based Victorian Football ...

stadium was unveiled. The text on the plaque reads: : John "Kanga" Kennedy played 164 games for the Hawthorn Football Club in 1950–59, including its first ever finals appearance in 1957. In 1960 aged just 31 Kennedy became coach and transformed Hawthorn and led the club to its first three premierships in 1961, 1971 and 1976. :Kennedy's Hawthorn teams became known as "Kennedy's Commandos". Wearing his trademark overcoat, his booming voice and stirring words inspired generations of Hawthorn players, taking them from easy beats to the most respected and revered club in the League. :He epitomised and taught all the values and attitudes that the Club cherishes. These were overwhelmingly a sense of TEAM, total DISCIPLINE, total INTEGRITY, and WILL to WIN at all costs. They are now core values, part of the club's character and as we compete in the 21st century this legacy as defined by John Kennedy will never be forgotten.

Death

Kennedy died at the age of 91, on 24 June 2020, the day before his grandson Josh Kennedy was to play his 250th AFL game.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kennedy, John Sr. 1928 births 2020 deaths Australian Football Hall of Fame inductees Sport Australia Hall of Fame inductees Hawthorn Football Club coaches Hawthorn Football Club Premiership coaches Hawthorn Football Club players Peter Crimmins Medal winners North Melbourne Football Club coaches Australian rules footballers from Melbourne Australian people of Irish descent Three-time VFL/AFL Premiership coaches People from Camberwell, Victoria