Wagga Wagga was always the destination for former Swans captain Paul Kelly once his illustrious 12-year career with the Sydney Swans came to an end.
Kelly, who was born and bred in the New South Wales Riverina town, relocated his young family back to the bush following his retirement in 2002 after 234 games with the Swans.
While Kelly’s life in Wagga has been relatively quiet, this year the former Swans star made the headlines when his property was hit by unprecedented floods in March, which occurred just two weeks before Kelly sustained a serious hip injury in a Nitro Circus stunt gone wrong.
But Kelly’s bad luck in 2012 has not dampened his spirits, as the SwansTV team found out when they visited the Swans former captain late last month.
Watch SwansTV's Kelly Country in the video player above
In an exclusive SwansTV feature, Kelly discussed his life after football, as well as his memorable career, including playing under AFL legend Ron Barassi, taking on the Swans’ captaincy and winning the Brownlow Medal in 1995.
Barassi’s appointment
After going through the worst period in the Sydney Swans history, which saw the club lose 26 consecutive games between 1992 and 1993, Kelly said the appointment of Ron Barassi was the shake up the Club needed to go forward.
“Barass was fantastic,” Kelly told SwansTV
“I’d been there for three years and then Barass turns up, and the AFL legend that he is, and you hear all those stories about him being a hard task master, which are true, but he’s also really fair and he was honest.
“You knew exactly how he felt or what he wanted from games and I really enjoyed playing footy under Barass and that was that you were expected to do what you were told and I really liked that in him.”
The Swans Captaincy
Kelly was named as the Swans’ captain in 1993, just three short years into his tenure at the football club.
Reflecting on his appointment, Kelly said he was an unlikely choice for the top role.
“I’d only been there for a couple of years and I’d only played 50 seniors games, and I was still sort of finding my feet in the team as well as the city,” he said.
“I probably felt that I wasn’t ready for (the captaincy) and I was really uncomfortable to be honest because there were a number of fellas there that would had been great players and great clubman who were still there when I was there, yet I was the captain.
“I know it was really good for me, it made me grow up really quickly and to take some responsibility and I know it helped my footy.”
The motorbike accident
Kelly also spoke about the impact of this year’s Wagga floods as well as the motorbike accident that resulted in him being bedridden for a month.
“A mate of mine is involved in the Nitro Circus … and got a gig for me doing this jump,” Kelly said about the motorbike stunt.
“I’d ridden motorbikes but I had never done the jump sort of stuff before.
“On the day I was just riding around and trying to get a feel for the bikes and unfortunately when I passed over the jump I fell on my back and the bike landed on top of me and I obviously broke my hip or my pelvis or both.
“I thought I’d broken my back at the time and thought I was gone and knew something was broken but I didn’t know what it was.”
Bloods Legend: Paul Kelly
Originally from Wagga Wagga, New South Wales, Paul Kelly made his senior debut for the Sydney Swans in 1990.
Playing most of his career in the number fourteen guernsey made famous by Bob Skilton, he was Captain of the Club from 1993 to 2002.
Club Champion in 1992, 1993, 1996 and 1997, he won the Brownlow Medal in 1995, earned All-Australian selection in 1995, 1996 and 1997, and was named All-Australian captain in both 1996 and 1997.
He played State football on three occasions.
By the time he retired at the end of the 2002 season, Paul Kelly had played 234 games and kicked 200 goals for the Sydney Swans.
He captained the Club in 182 matches, which remains a Club record.
Vice-captain of the Swans Team Of The Century, Paul Kelly was inducted into the AFL Hall of Fame in 2007.
The peer-voted Players’ Player Award presented at the Club Champion dinner each year is named in Paul’s honour.
Paul Kelly
1990-2002
234 games 200 goals
Captain 1993-2002
Best & Fairest 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997
Brownlow Medal 1995
All-Australian 1995, 1996, 1997
Swans Team Of The Century (vice-captain)
