Michael James Kennedy (born 3 February 1967) is a former

Australian rules football Australian football, also called Australian rules football or Aussie rules, or more simply football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an oval field, often a modified cricket ground. Points are scored by k ...

player who played for the 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). Kennedy played his early football with

Queanbeyan Queanbeyan ( ) is a city in the south-eastern region of New South Wales, Australia, located adjacent to the Australian Capital Territory in the Southern Tablelands region. Located on the Queanbeyan River, the city is the council seat of the ...

in the Australian Capital Territory Australian Football League (ACTAFL) and was an ACT representative at the

1988 Adelaide Bicentennial Carnival The 1988 Adelaide Bicentennial Carnival was the 22nd edition of the Australian National Football Carnival, an Australian rules football State of Origin competition. Australia was celebrating its Bicentenary in 1988, so the carnival was known as th ...

. Drafted by Brisbane at the 1987 VFL draft, Kennedy made his senior VFL debut in

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 Australian ...

against

Collingwood Football Club The Collingwood Football Club, nicknamed the Magpies or colloquially the Pies, is a professional Australian rules football club based in Melbourne that competes in the Australian Football League (AFL), the sport's elite competition. The club w ...

and in all spent three seasons with Brisbane for 23 games. Delisted by Brisbane at the end of the

1990 AFL season The 1990 AFL season was the 94th season of the Australian Football League (AFL) and the first under this name, having been known as the Victorian Football League until 1989. It was the highest level senior Australian rules football competition ...

, Kennedy was recruited by

South Australian National Football League The South Australian National Football League, or SANFL ( or ''S-A-N-F-L''), is an Australian rules football league based in the Australian state of South Australia. It is also the state's governing body for the sport. Originally formed as the ...

(SANFL) club West Adelaide and made his senior SANFL debut in May 1991 and played a key role in West Adelaide's run to the

1991 SANFL Grand Final The 1991 South Australian National Football League (SANFL) Grand Final saw North Adelaide defeat West Adelaide by 75 points. The match was played on Saturday 5 October 1991 at Football Park Football Park, known commercially as AAMI Stad ...

, where they lost in a spiteful match to

North Adelaide Football Club North Adelaide Football Club, nicknamed The Roosters, is an Australian rules football club affiliated with the South Australian National Football League (SANFL) and SANFL Women's League (SANFLW). The club plays its home games at Prospect Oval, ...

. Kennedy left West Adelaide and returned to Queanbeyan in 1994, winning the ACTAFL's Best and Fairest award, the

Mulrooney Medal The Mulrooney Medal is an Australian rules football award for the best and fairest player in the AFL Canberra first-grade competition. It has been the premier individual award for Australian rules football in the Australian Capital Territory sinc ...

, in his first season. He was appointed Queanbeyan captain-coach in 1995, lasting one season before continuing in a playing capacity until his retirement in 1997.

References

* * *Holmesby, Russell and Main, Jim (2007). ''The Encyclopedia of AFL Footballers''. 7th ed. Melbourne: Bas Publishing. {{DEFAULTSORT:Kennedy, Michael 1967 births Living people Brisbane Bears players West Adelaide Football Club players Queanbeyan Football Club players Australian rules footballers from New South Wales