Guy McKenna

Guy Lindsay McKenna (born 11 May 1969) is a retired Australian rules football player and the former senior coach of the Gold Coast Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). McKenna played 267 games for the West Coast Eagles, including the 1992 and 1994 premiership wins. He captained the club between 1999 and 2000 AFL season.

Guy McKenna
McKenna in June 2017
Personal information
Full name Guy Lindsay McKenna
Nickname(s) Bluey
Date of birth (1969-05-11) 11 May 1969
Place of birth Perth, Western Australia
Original team(s) Carine JFC
Height 184 cm (6 ft 0 in)
Weight 88 kg (194 lb)
Position(s) Half-back flanker
Playing career1
Years Club Games (Goals)
1985–87; 1992 Claremont 49 (5)
1988–2000 West Coast 267 (28)
Representative team honours
Years Team Games (Goals)
1987–1997 Western Australia 5 (1)
Coaching career3
Years Club Games (W–L–D)
2003 Claremont 21 (12–9–0)
2011–2014 Gold Coast 88 (24–64–0)
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of 2000.
3 Coaching statistics correct as of 2014.
Career highlights
Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com

WAFL career

Educated at Carine Senior High School and originally from Carine Junior Football Club, McKenna was zoned to Claremont in the West Australian Football League (WAFL), where he played 49 games in four seasons from 1985 to 1987 and in 1992, including the Tigers' 1987 premiership.

AFL career

McKenna was recruited by the West Coast Eagles for the 1988 season with a pre-draft selection. He played for the Eagles from 1988 until 2000, notching up 267 games and booting 28 goals. He formed one of the most feared backlines in the AFL, along with John Worsfold, Ashley McIntosh, Glen Jakovich and Michael Brennan and was known for his cool demeanour and reliability.

He won the Club Champion Award twice, once in 1989 and the other in 1999, finishing in the top three another five times.

He was captain from 1998 until his retirement at the end of 2000. He kicked a memorable goal on the final kick of his career in Round 22 2000 which frenzied the crowd at Subiaco Oval.

McKenna boasts two unusual on-field distinctions from his career. In Round 20, 1994, he was the first player ever ordered from the ground under the blood rule, which had been introduced to the league that week.[1] Then, in a match against St Kilda in Round 22, 1999, for the first time since Essendon's Jack Clarke in 1958, McKenna became the third captain in league history to call for a headcount; however, the teams were even.[2][3]

Coaching career

After retiring he coached in the West Australian Football League as senior coach of the Claremont Football Club with considerable success before moving to an assistant coaching role with the West Coast Eagles and then the Collingwood Football Club to be under former mentor Michael Malthouse.

Gold Coast Suns Football Club coach (2011-2014)

In 2009, McKenna was appointed the inaugural senior coach of the newly founded Gold Coast Suns Football Club. He oversaw their TAC Cup and VFL campaigns prior to their entrance in the AFL. In the 2011 season, the Gold Coast Suns under McKenna in its inaugural season in the AFL league, finished in last place on the ladder with three wins and nineteen losses. In the 2012 season, the Gold Coast suns under McKenna finished in seventeenth position (second-last) on the ladder, yet again with three wins and nineteen losses. In the 2013 season, the Gold Coast Suns under McKenna improved performance when they finished fourteenth on the ladder with eight wins and fourteen losses. In the 2014 season, Gold Coast Suns under McKenna finished in twelve place on the ladder with ten wins and twelve losses. But however after the Suns failed to make the finals in their first four years in the AFL senior competition league, McKenna was sacked as senior coach of the Gold Coast Suns on 1 October 2014, at the end of the 2014 season.[4] McKenna was then replaced by Rodney Eade as Gold Coast Suns Football Club senior coach.

McKenna coached Gold Coast Suns Football Club to a total of 88 games with 24 wins and 64 losses to a winning percentage of 27 percent.

Post AFL senior coaching roles

On 9 November 2015, McKenna was appointed as an assistant coach in the position of line coach at Essendon.[5]

Statistics

Playing statistics
[6]
Legend
 G  Goals  K  Kicks  D  Disposals  T  Tackles
 B  Behinds  H  Handballs  M  Marks
Season Team No. Games Totals Averages (per game)
G B K H D M T G B K H D M T
1988 West Coast 17180316915632573170.00.29.48.718.14.10.9
1989 West Coast 172011184184368113260.10.19.29.218.45.71.3
1990 West Coast 17264325221046297520.20.19.78.117.83.72.0
1991 West Coast 17262625921046980410.10.210.08.118.03.11.6
1992† West Coast 171222919518637220.20.27.67.915.53.11.8
1993 West Coast 17211119916536492390.00.09.57.917.34.41.9
1994† West Coast 172554227202429103490.20.29.18.117.24.12.0
1995 West Coast 17235215520836381440.20.16.79.015.83.51.9
1996 West Coast 172250204175379118580.20.09.38.017.25.42.6
1997 West Coast 17201017714532289580.10.08.97.316.14.52.9
1998 West Coast 17221120916137082640.00.09.57.316.83.72.9
1999 West Coast 172301216175391113410.00.09.47.617.04.91.8
2000 West Coast 17911566311931120.10.16.27.013.23.41.3
Career 267 28 25 2398 2149 4547 1109 523 0.1 0.1 9.0 8.0 17.0 4.2 2.0

Coaching statistics
[7]
Legend
 W  Wins  L  Losses  D  Draws  W%  Winning percentage  LP  Ladder position  LT  League teams
Season Team Games W L D W % LP LT
2011 Gold Coast 22319013.6%1717
2012 Gold Coast 22319013.6%1718
2013 Gold Coast 22814036.4%1418
2014 Gold Coast 221012045.5%1218
Career totals 88 24 64 0 27.3%

References
  1. Richard Hinds (7 August 1994). "New rule grounds Eagle". The Sunday Age (Sport Liftout). Melbourne, VIC. p. 3.
  2. "1999 Review". 1999. Archived from the original on 27 September 2011. Retrieved 10 September 2011.
  3. "Bluey explains bizarre 'headcount' incident". The West Australian. 18 September 2020. Retrieved 25 September 2021.
  4. Gold Coast sacks Guy McKenna as speculation mounts club will make play for Essendon’s Mark Thompson, News.com.au, 1 October 2014
  5. "McKenna appointed Line Coach". Essendon Football Club. 9 November 2015. Retrieved 9 November 2015.
  6. Guy McKenna's player profile at AFL Tables
  7. Guy McKenna's coaching profile at AFL Tables
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