Kelly Shelford (born 4 May 1966) is a New Zealand

rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 112 ...

player who represented

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

, including in Test matches that counted towards the 1992 World Cup.

Playing career

Shelford was a

Manukau Magpies The Manukau Magpies are a rugby league football club based in Mangere, a suburb of Auckland in New Zealand, who compete in the Auckland Rugby League. The club was established in March 1912 after a meeting in Onehunga (where they were originally ...

junior and played for the club in the

Auckland Rugby League The Auckland Rugby League (ARL) is the governing body for the sport of rugby league in the Auckland Region of New Zealand. It is responsible for rugby league in the region, including both club and school rugby league. It began in 1910 when the fi ...

competition. In 1985 he won the Bert Humphries Memorial award as the most improved back in the competition. Shelford then switched clubs, joining the

Glenora Bears The Glenora Bears are a rugby league football club based in Glen Eden, New Zealand who compete in Auckland Rugby League's Fox Memorial competition. History The club was established in 1931 Auckland Rugby League season, 1931 when the Auckland ...

. In 1988 he won the Tetley Trophy as the top try scorer in the competition and in 1989 he won the

Rothville Trophy The Auckland Rugby League competition has been competed for since 1909 when the first organised match was played between North Shore and City Rovers (won 44–22 by North Shore). The following year an official champion was crowned for the first tim ...

as the player of the year. In 1991 Shelford joined the

Otahuhu Leopards The Otahuhu Leopards are a rugby league club based in Otahuhu, Auckland. Founded in 1911 Auckland Rugby League season, 1911, the club has produced 49 New Zealand national rugby league team players. The club competes in the Fox Memorial competit ...

. Shelford was also an Auckland representative and played for the New Zealand Māori side between 1986 and 1997. During the 1980s Shelford also played for the

Whitehaven Whitehaven is a town and port on the English north west coast and near to the Lake District National Park in Cumbria, England. Historically in Cumberland, it lies by road south-west of Carlisle and to the north of Barrow-in-Furness. It is th ...

in England, where he played only a small number of games, then left with no explanation. Between 1989 and 1991 Shelford was a

New Zealand national rugby league team The New Zealand national rugby league team (Māori: Tīma rīki motu Aotearoa) has represented New Zealand in rugby league since 1907. Administered by the New Zealand Rugby League, they are commonly known as the Kiwis, after the native bird of ...

representative, playing in ten Test matches. In 1991 Shelford joined the

Warrington Wolves The Warrington Wolves are a professional rugby league club based in Warrington, England, that competes in the Super League. They play rugby at the Halliwell Jones Stadium, having moved there from Wilderspool in 2004. Founded as Warrington Z ...

. Kelly Shelford played in

Warrington Warrington () is a town and unparished area in the borough of the same name in the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England, on the banks of the River Mersey. It is east of Liverpool, and west of Manchester. The population in 2019 was estimat ...

's 10-40 defeat by

Wigan Wigan ( ) is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, on the River Douglas, Lancashire, River Douglas. The town is midway between the two cities of Manchester, to the south-east, and Liverpool, to the south-west. Bolton lies to the nor ...

in the 1994–95 Regal Trophy Final during the 1994–95 season at

Alfred McAlpine Stadium Kirklees Stadium (currently known due to naming rights, sponsorship as the John Smith's Stadium) is a multi-use stadium in Huddersfield in West Yorkshire, England. Since 1994, it has been the home ground of Association football, football club ...

Huddersfield Huddersfield is a market town in the Kirklees district in West Yorkshire, England. It is the administrative centre and largest settlement in the Kirklees district. The town is in the foothills of the Pennines. The River Holme's confluence into ...

on Saturday 28 January 1995. He stayed with the club until the 1997 season, when he left midway through the season. After leaving Warrington, Shelford returned home and joined the

Waikato Cougars The Waikato rugby league team (also known as the Waikato Cougars, formerly as South Auckland) is a New Zealand rugby league team that represents the Waikato Rugby League in New Zealand Rugby League competitions. They competed in the Lion Red Cup ...

in the National Provincial Competition.Four clinch spots in Maori team
''Waikato Times'', 30 October 1997 In 1998 Shelford served as the

player-coach A player-coach (also playing coach, captain-coach, or player-manager) is a member of a sports team who simultaneously holds both playing and coaching duties. A player-coach may be a head coach or an assistant coach. They may make changes to the sq ...

for Hukanui in the

Waikato Rugby League Waikato Rugby League is the local sporting body responsible for the administration of rugby league in the Waikato region of New Zealand. The WRL are represented by the Waikato rugby league team. They are currently part of the Upper Central Zone alo ...

. In 1999 he switched to cross town rivals, the Hamilton City Tigers.

Coaching career

Shelford coached the

Papakura Sea Eagles The Papakura Sea Eagles are an Auckland rugby league club based in Papakura. The Sea Eagles currently compete in the Fox Memorial competition run by the Auckland Rugby League. History The Papakura Rugby League Club formed in 1931. On March 26 th ...

in the

competition in 2002 and in 2003 Shelford coached the

Manurewa Marlins The Manurewa Marlins are a rugby league club based in Manurewa, New Zealand. In 2018 the Marlins will compete in Auckland Rugby League's Sharman Cup competition. Between 2000 and 2003 they competed in the national Bartercard Cup competition. N ...

in the

Bartercard Cup The Bartercard Cup (successor of the Lion Red Cup) was the top level rugby league club competition in New Zealand from 2000 until 2007. For the entire life of the tournament it was sponsored by Bartercard. The cup was administered by the New Zeala ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shelford, Kelly 1966 births Living people Auckland rugby league team players Glenora Bears players Hamilton City Tigers players Manukau Magpies players Manurewa Marlins coaches New Zealand rugby league coaches New Zealand rugby league players New Zealand Māori rugby league players New Zealand Māori rugby league team players New Zealand national rugby league team players New Zealand expatriate sportspeople in England Otahuhu Leopards players Papakura Sea Eagles coaches Rugby league five-eighths Waikato rugby league team players Warrington Wolves players Whitehaven R.L.F.C. players