James Kelly
Geelong and Essendon · “Pop”
AFL career
313 games90 goals
- Debut
- R6 2002 v BRL4 May 2002
- Most recent
- EF 2017 v SYD9 Sept 2017
Stats
2017 | ESS | 20 | 10.5 | 9.8 | 20.3 | 5.8 | 0.4 | 0.9 | 3.7 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 81 | 73 |
2016 | ESS | 20 | 13.4 | 11.9 | 25.3 | 6.5 | 1.1 | 1.1 | 4.3 | 0.1 | 0.2 | 99 | 96 |
2015 | GEE | 17 | 10.9 | 9.6 | 20.5 | 4.7 | 1.0 | 0.9 | 4.2 | 0.1 | 0.4 | 82 | 76 |
2014 | GEE | 23 | 13.6 | 7.7 | 21.2 | 4.9 | 0.7 | 1.3 | 3.9 | 0.0 | 0.2 | 83 | 85 |
2013 | GEE | 20 | 11.7 | 10.1 | 21.8 | 2.5 | 0.7 | 1.3 | 7.7 | 0.5 | 0.6 | 94 | 89 |
2012 | GEE | 19 | 13.8 | 11.2 | 25.0 | 3.1 | 0.8 | 1.6 | 6.7 | 0.1 | 0.3 | 97 | 103 |
2011 | GEE | 24 | 13.3 | 10.8 | 24.0 | 2.6 | 1.0 | 1.9 | 7.7 | 0.2 | 0.5 | 97 | 96 |
2010 | GEE | 23 | 11.2 | 13.1 | 24.3 | 3.8 | 0.8 | 1.2 | 6.1 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 94 | 98 |
2009 | GEE | 18 | 10.8 | 11.8 | 22.6 | 4.9 | 0.6 | 0.3 | 3.1 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 83 | 89 |
2008 | GEE | 21 | 9.3 | 11.0 | 20.4 | 4.5 | 1.1 | 1.0 | 5.3 | 0.4 | 0.3 | 86 | 88 |
2007 | GEE | 23 | 8.7 | 10.7 | 19.4 | 3.7 | 0.7 | 0.7 | 3.7 | 0.5 | 0.4 | 75 | 80 |
2006 | GEE | 15 | 8.9 | 7.9 | 16.9 | 3.2 | 0.5 | 0.7 | 2.7 | 0.5 | 0.1 | 64 | - |
2005 | GEE | 24 | 10.6 | 7.4 | 18.0 | 4.0 | 1.0 | 0.9 | 3.5 | 0.5 | 0.3 | 74 | - |
2004 | GEE | 13 | 11.6 | 6.5 | 18.1 | 3.7 | 0.8 | 1.2 | 3.2 | 0.7 | 0.3 | 74 | - |
2003 | GEE | 18 | 7.2 | 6.1 | 13.2 | 2.4 | 0.5 | 0.9 | 3.1 | 0.3 | 0.4 | 53 | - |
2002 | GEE | 15 | 9.1 | 5.7 | 14.8 | 2.7 | 0.8 | 0.7 | 3.3 | 0.5 | 0.3 | 62 | - |
SYD | SCG | EF | 7 | 10 | 17 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0.0 | 74 | 73 |
FRE | ES | R23 | 10 | 13 | 23 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0.0 | 94 | 81 |
GCS | MS | R22 | 11 | 11 | 22 | 9 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 0.0 | 90 | 70 |
ADE | ES | R21 | 13 | 8 | 21 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0.0 | 86 | 61 |
WBD | ES | R19 | 8 | 7 | 15 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0.0 | 64 | 65 |
NTH | ES | R18 | 1 | 11 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0.0 | 48 | 54 |
STK | ES | R17 | 17 | 11 | 28 | 13 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 0.0 | 138 | 116 |
COL | MCG | R16 | 11 | 21 | 32 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 0.0 | 113 | 107 |
BRL | ES | R15 | 4 | 10 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0.0 | 38 | 45 |
SYD | SCG | R14 | 9 | 6 | 15 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0.0 | 63 | 63 |
PAD | ES | R12 | 13 | 7 | 20 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0.0 | 84 | 77 |
RCH | MCG | R10 | 9 | 10 | 19 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0.0 | 80 | 74 |
WCE | ES | R9 | 13 | 10 | 23 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0.0 | 109 | 78 |
GEE | MCG | R8 | 16 | 7 | 23 | 10 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0.0 | 99 | 85 |
FRE | DS | R7 | 5 | 8 | 13 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0.0 | 53 | 51 |
COL | MCG | R5 | 12 | 12 | 24 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0.0 | 74 | 69 |
ADE | AO | R4 | 9 | 16 | 25 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0.0 | 76 | 62 |
CAR | MCG | R3 | 18 | 2 | 20 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0.0 | 80 | 89 |
BRL | Gabba | R2 | 12 | 6 | 18 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0.0 | 70 | 56 |
HAW | MCG | R1 | 11 | 10 | 21 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0.0 | 81 | 74 |
Bio
Recruited from the Calder Cannons with pick 17 in the heralded "Super Draft" of 2001, James Kelly became a cornerstone of the Geelong dynasty that dominated the competition between 2007 and 2011. While often receiving less external fanfare than teammates like Gary Ablett Jr and Jimmy Bartel, Kelly was revered internally for his elite tackling, two-way running, and unwavering courage. He played a vital role in three premierships and earned All-Australian honours in 2011, evolving over time from a hard-nosed inside midfielder into a composed half-back who could read the play and distribute with precision.
His exit from Geelong was controversial, as the club delisted him at the end of 2015 in a ruthless list management decision designed to accelerate a rebuild. Kelly was quickly signed by Essendon as a designated top-up player required to cover the suspensions resulting from the club's supplements saga. Far from just filling a jersey, Kelly finished equal runner-up in the Crichton Medal in his first season at Tullamarine, providing crucial leadership and on-field stability during the club's most difficult year. He played two seasons for the Bombers, crossing the 300-game threshold, before retiring in 2017 as one of the most decorated and respected players of his generation.
Profile
- Born
- 29 Dec 1983 (age 42y 296d)
- Birthplace
- Victoria
- Height
- 183 cm
- Weight
- 86 kg
Teams
Honours
- Premiership(3×) 2007, 2009, 2011
- All-Australian2011
- Essendon B&F
- 2nd
- 2016
- Top 10
- 2017
- Geelong B&F
- 3rd
- 2010
- Top 10
- 2005, 2011, 2012, 2014
Bio
1 revisionRecruited from the Calder Cannons with pick 17 in the heralded "Super Draft" of 2001, James Kelly became a cornerstone of the Geelong dynasty that dominated the competition between 2007 and 2011. While often receiving less external fanfare than teammates like Gary Ablett Jr and Jimmy Bartel, Kelly was revered internally for his elite tackling, two-way running, and unwavering courage. He played a vital role in three premierships and earned All-Australian honours in 2011, evolving over time from a hard-nosed inside midfielder into a composed half-back who could read the play and distribute with precision.
His exit from Geelong was controversial, as the club delisted him at the end of 2015 in a ruthless list management decision designed to accelerate a rebuild. Kelly was quickly signed by Essendon as a designated top-up player required to cover the suspensions resulting from the club's supplements saga. Far from just filling a jersey, Kelly finished equal runner-up in the Crichton Medal in his first season at Tullamarine, providing crucial leadership and on-field stability during the club's most difficult year. He played two seasons for the Bombers, crossing the 300-game threshold, before retiring in 2017 as one of the most decorated and respected players of his generation.