David Kelly (association footballer)

Kelly was diagnosed with Legg–Calvé–Perthes disease at the age of five, and at one stage his left leg was four inches shorter than the right leg, and he was on crutches until the age of ten.[4] He played football for Bartley Green Boys regardless, and was attached to West Bromwich Albion before he was released by Albion, at which stage he worked as a trolley porter at Cadbury's whilst representing the youth team at non-league side Alvechurch.[5] He joined Walsall following a successful trial in 1981, and turned professional at the club under Alan Buckley two years later.[6][7] He scored three goals in six Third Division games in the 1983–84 season, before winning a regular first team place in the 1984–85 campaign, scoring 13 goals from 41 appearances. He provided ten goals from 28 league games in the 1985–86 campaign, before his career took off under new manager Tommy Coakley; he top-scored with 26 goals from 55 appearances as the "Saddlers" posted an eighth-place finish in 1986–87, and was named in the Third Division PFA Team of the Year.[8] He then scored 30 goals from 54 matches in the 1987–88 season as Walsall won promotion via the play-offs in 1988; he scored a hat-trick in the replay of the 1988 play-off final as Walsall beat Bristol City to achieve promotion.[7] He went on to have a week-long trial at Bayern Munich, but did not join the club despite Uli Hoeneß reportedly comparing him to Denis Law.[9] He scored a total of 82 goals in 190 league and cup appearances over the course of five seasons at Fellows Park, and the transfer fee received for him remains a club record.[10]

His exploits attracted the attention of West Ham United, who signed him for a fee of £600,000 in August 1988.[7] He made his debut in a 4–0 defeat to Southampton.[11] His stay at the Boleyn Ground proved to be largely unsuccessful as an initially promising strike partnership with Leroy Rosenior floundered as he scored only six goals in 25 First Division games as John Lyall's "Hammers" suffered relegation in 1988–89.[12] Kelly also failed to find form for the club under new boss Lou Macari in the Second Division, scoring just two goals in 24 matches of the 1989–90 campaign.[11]

Kelly was sold to David Pleat's Leicester City for a fee of £300,000 in March 1990. He recaptured his form at Filbert Street, scoring seven goals from just ten games in the latter stages of the 1989–90 season. He then top-scored with 15 goals from 48 games to help new "Foxes" boss Gordon Lee avoid relegation out of the Second Division in 1990–91. They mounted a challenge for promotion under the stewardship of Brian Little in 1991–92, though Kelly would leave the club midway through the season.

Kelly was signed to Second Division Newcastle United in December 1991 after manager Osvaldo Ardiles agreed a fee of £250,000.[13] He scored 11 league goals for the "Magpies", including the winning goal over Tyne–Wear derby rivals Sunderland, as they avoided relegation in 1991–92.[13] He was then the club's top-scorer with 28 goals from 57 games as Kevin Keegan steered Newcastle to promotion into the Premier League as champions of the First Division.[13] In his final game for United, on the last day of the season against his old club Leicester City, Kelly and new strike-partner Andy Cole both scored hat-tricks in a 7–1 win at St James' Park.[14] He was named as Newcastle United's Player of the Year, but was allowed to leave the club due to the return of Peter Beardsley. Kelly remained a highly popular figure at Newcastle, even commanding a standing ovation upon returning to St James' Park in Sunderland colours.[15]

Kelly did not make the move back to the top-flight with Newcastle as he was transferred to First Division side Wolverhampton Wanderers in June 1993 after manager Graham Turner paid £750,000 to secure his services.[16] He hit 14 goals from 44 games in the 1993–94 season, as Wolves posted an eighth-place finish. New manager Graham Taylor then took Wolves to fourth place in 1994–95, with Kelly top-scoring with 22 goals in 54 appearances, breaking Steve Bull's run of eight consecutive seasons as Wolves's top-scorer. However, he lost his first team place at Molineux to Don Goodman early in the 1995–96 season and requested a transfer.

He signed a three-year contract with Sunderland after moving in a £900,000 deal in September 1995.[3] However an ankle injury restricted him to two goals in ten league matches as manager Peter Reid led the "Black Cats" to promotion into the Premier League as champions of the First Division in 1995–96, and he was transfer-listed in the summer.[3] He remained a regular player at Roker Park in the 1996–97 campaign but failed to score a single goal all season, often being used as a right-sided midfielder rather than a striker.[3]

Kelly returned to the First Division after securing a £350,000 move to Tranmere Rovers in August 1997.[3] John Aldridge's "Superwhites" managed to secure mid-table finishes in his three seasons at Prenton Park, as he scored 14 goals from 37 games in 1997–98, six goals from 29 matches in 1998–99, and 15 goals from 46 appearances in 1999–2000. He was appointed as club captain soon after joining.[3] He featured prominently in the club's run to the 2000 League Cup Final, and scored the consolation goal in a 2–1 loss to former club Leicester City at Wembley Stadium.[17] He was released by Tranmere in July 2000 after failing to agree a new one-year contract.[18]

Kelly moved to Neil Warnock's Sheffield United on a free transfer at the start of the 2000–01 season. However his one season at Bramall Lane was not a success, as he scored just six goals in 35 league games. In June 2001, he turned down a coaching role at United and instead signed a two-year contract with Billy Davies's Motherwell in the Scottish Premier League.[19] However, he was sacked on 15 January 2002 following a bust-up with new manager Eric Black.[20] Two weeks later he accepted an offer of a three-month contract to return to the English league in the Third Division with Mansfield Town.[21] He scored four goals in 17 games as Stuart Watkiss's "Stags" leapfrogged Cheltenham Town in the race for the final automatic promotion place. Kelly left Field Mill after being released in April 2002.[22] He went on to train with Telford United, but rejected the club's offer of a contract.[23] He went on to cross the Irish Sea to join Derry City in July 2002.[24] In his final game of professional football, Kelly helped the "Candystripes" to a 1–0 victory over Shamrock Rovers in the 2002 FAI Cup final.[25]

Source:[49][50]