Australian Football

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Key Facts

Full name
Kevin Michael Patrick Higgins

Known as
Kevin Higgins

Born
20 February 1951

Died
5 July 2019 (aged 68)

Age at first & last AFL game
First game: 19y 43d
Last game: 29y 47d

Height and weight
Height: 183 cm
Weight: 89 kg

Senior clubs
Geelong; Fitzroy

Jumper numbers
Geelong: 14, 39
Fitzroy: 14

Recruited from
Geelong (1979)

Kevin Higgins

ClubLeagueCareer spanGamesGoalsAvgWin %AKIAHBAMKBV
GeelongV/AFL1970, 1972-1978128350.2742%13.132.183.3418
FitzroyV/AFL1979-19802500.0064%14.165.002.768
V/AFL1970, 1972-1980153350.2346%13.302.643.2526
Total1970, 1972-1980153350.2346%13.302.643.2526

AFL: 8,223rd player to appear, 1,264th most games played, 2,667th most goals kickedGeelong: 710th player to appear, 114th most games played, 206th most goals kickedFitzroy: 960th player to appear, 411th most games played, 1,120th most goals kicked

Recruited by Geelong from Sandhurst, where he had chiefly played as a centre half forward, Kevin Higgins was re-moulded by the Cats into a powerful, highly dependable defender whose left foot kicking was a connoisseurs' delight. That said, he was also capable of taking on other roles when called upon to do so and indeed was one of the most versatile players in the team.

Higgins played 128 VFL games and kicked 35 goals for Geelong in 1970 and from 1972 to 1978. He then spent a couple of seasons at Fitzroy, where he again played mainly as a defender, adding 25 senior appearances (but no goals) to his career tally.

Between 1981 and 1988 Higgins coached Geelong Football League club New town and Chilwell. He also played for the club for a time, mainly as a forward, and in both 1981 and 1982 he kicked 100 goals, topping the league list in the latter year.

Kevin Higgins spent the 1990 season coaching Sturt in the SANFL but it proved to be an immensely disappointing campaign which produced just a couple of wins from 20 starts and saw the Blues slide to the wooden spoon.

Author - John Devaney

Sources

Encyclopedia of AFL Footballers by Russell Holmesby & Jim Main; Wikipedia article

Footnotes

* Behinds calculated from the 1965 season on.
+ Score at the end of extra time.