Former Wolves and Republic of Ireland forward David Kelly reflects on his most elegant, skilful and stylish teammates, kits and moments which make up his beautiful game.
Most beautiful player | Paul McGrath
His reading of the game, his positional sense, his recognition of danger, his ability to control the ball, to fight and travel forward with the ball was unlike anyone else I played with. He was aggressive in both boxes and the perfect centre-half.
Most beautiful Wolves teammate | Andy Thompson
I really liked playing with Don Goodman and felt we had a good sense of togetherness and how we played, but it has to be Thommo. He was by far the best full-back, either left or right, in the Championship at the time and he was one of the most reliable footballers I’ve ever played with. He’d turn up, he’d do his job, he’d give his all, and then he’d go home and get on with life. I’m a bit biased towards Thommo because he was a football players’ football player. That’s the biggest credit I could give him. Everybody wanted him in their team.
Most beautiful opposition | Manchester United
We played Manchester United when I was a kid at Walsall in the mid-80s and ironically Paul McGrath was playing for United in that game. That United team with Bryan Robson, Remi Moses, McGrath and all those old-timers, and it was a real eye-opener for me at the time. I hadn’t been in the Walsall first-team for a while, I’d only been there a couple of years and we got to play Manchester United before they became the brilliant United side of the golden generation under Ferguson, but they just had proper men footballers.
Most beautiful goal | Cantona vs Sunderland, 1996
Eric Cantona’s chip against Lionel Perez at Sunderland, when Eric turns around and puts his hands on his hips and just smiles. I was playing as a right winger for Sunderland that day, and after he scored it, I remember saying to Denis Irwin, ‘That goal was that good, I feel like clapping!’ Denis said, ‘You can’t clap, Ned!’ It was an incredible goal and I thought as soon as it went in that this was going to be an iconic goal. It was unbelievably brilliant and as an opposition player, all you can do in that situation is admire it.
Most beautiful stadium | Villa Park
This might be an bizarre choice coming from an Albion supporter who played for Wolves and Walsall and has a Bluenose in the family, but I’ve always had a soft spot for Villa Park. I’m a traditionalist and I like going to the older stadiums where they don’t get knocked over and there’s a great atmosphere and Villa Park has a great history to it, it has a sense of awe to it, and I always enjoy going there. I didn’t particularly do well or not do well when I played there, but I just like it.
Most beautiful kit | Ireland 1994
I’ve got to go for the Ireland 1994 World Cup shirt because I was blessed to be able to play in it and represent my national team for so long. At the end of the day, I was a substitute, but I came on in the 94 World Cup against Norway and that kit is one of the biggest treasures of mine. It was an incredible moment and one I’ll never forget as not many players can say they’ve played at a World Cup. I remember Jack [Charlton] just turned round to the bench and said, ‘Kells, get on.’ As blunt as Jack could ever be, he said, ‘Go and chase them around’.
Most beautiful moment in history | Scoring a hat-trick for Ireland
I’ve got two. The first would be scoring on my international debut for Ireland against Israel at Dalymount Park. Not only did I make my debut, but I managed to score a hat-trick, and there’s not many people who can say they’ve scored a hat-trick on their international debut. The second moment would be my goal against Portsmouth at St James’ Park in 1992 which kept Newcastle from getting relegated into the old third division. It was such an important moment for Newcastle and helped them to become the club they are today. Both of those are the favourite moments of my career.
This article originally featured in Wolves' official 2025/26 matchday programme. Last season's programmes are still available to purchase online through retailers Curtis Sports.
