TVOS Recap: Ask Keith Keano...
During the 2016-17 season, we asked supporters to send in questions for players/ Manager Keith Hill for our matchday programme feature 'Ask'. Every player (and Keith Hill) appeared in our 'Ask' feature during the course of the campaign, and we've been picking some of our favourite Q&As to recap.
Today is the turn of Keith Keane, whose Q&A featured in our programme v Walsall in November.
How are you finding your time at Rochdale so far?
I’m really, really enjoying it. All of the lads have been great and the staff have been excellent with me. I’m glad to be back playing and I’m glad that I’ve come here. The Gaffer is the type of manager I like. He’s very straight forward, there’s no messing around, there’s no lies and he tells us what he thinks. For me, that’s the best way to be.
You made your debut at just 16-years-old, how would you sum up your career so far?
I’d say it has been interesting. I’d been at Luton Town since the age of nine and I made my senior debut for them in 2003 in what was known back then as the LDV Vans Trophy, and we won 2-1 away at Rushden and Diamonds.
I was quite fortunate to have a manager who was willing to play young players if he thought they were good enough, so after that, I managed to stay in and around the squad and made my league debut a few months later. I was supposed to be on the bench but two right backs got injured in the warm-up and I ended up starting the match against Wycombe and I got a run of games in the side after that. I was pretty lucky to make my league debut when I did considering two players got injured during the warm-up, but that can happen in football and I took my chance.
I went on to win a few things with them, including promotion to the Championship in 2005, but it got to a point where it was time for me to move on from there and I moved back up the leagues to Preston.
I’ve been around a bit so I’ve had the opportunity to experience playing at clubs of all sizes, which has been really good and interesting. Everywhere is different, everywhere has different priorities, and I’m glad I’ve had the chance to experience playing for different clubs. I’m now at an age where I’m just enjoying playing football.
You haven’t scored too many goals during your career, but out of the goals you have scored, which one is your favourite?
Considering I haven’t scored many, I think it’s only ten, I’ve actually won three Goal of the Season Awards! For all of the strikers that score goals, there aren’t many that have won three awards.
The three awards came during my time at Luton Town and I came close with another one at Preston but someone pipped me to it, so although I don’t score many, when I do, they’re normally not too bad.
I’ve worked out that I must be due a goal every 50 appearances, so I reckon I must be due one soon!
My favourite goal was when I scored for Luton against Oxford, who were above us in the table, in 2010. We were both going for promotion from the Conference and we were 2-1 down when it got to the 90th minute. We equalised in stoppage time through a corner that I took and we ended up getting another corner which I sent in again. I actually scored directly from that corner, and as you can imagine, the whole place erupted. I ended up celebrating in the crowd and as a result picked up a second yellow card and got sent off.
You read the game so well. Does this come naturally to you or is it something that has developed with experience?
Luckily, I’ve always been that way, because quite simply, I’ve never been the quickest. You tend to find that the players who aren’t the quickest need to be able to read the game. That’s so you can be in right positions at the right times. To be honest, I don’t really notice it myself – I just play the game and do what I need to do.
What makes Keith Keane tick away from football?
I’m a very chilled out person and happy to go along with the crowd. I don’t get up to too much - I’m quite boring, to be honest! I spend a lot of time watching box sets and bit of TV – that’s how I like to unwind.
What was your first car?
It was an MG ZR which was two-tone purple in colour. Look back now, I made a bad mistake with that one!