Kelly was born in Ireland but brought up in England in
Bristol. He migrated to Australia when he was 19, settling in
Melbourne. Kelly played domestic cricket for
Victoria for 17 seasons, first appearing in the summer of 1863–64. He gained a reputation as a fine fielder and aggressive batsman. Kelly made his Test debut in the Second Test of the 1876–77 season. In the second innings, Kelly hit 35 – his highest Test score – of which all but three runs came from boundaries. His highest
first-class score was 86 for Victoria against
New South Wales in 1874–75. Kelly married Margaret Meoney in Melbourne in September 1869. He worked in Melbourne as a merchant. His wife died in 1883. He died at his home in the Melbourne suburb of
Hawthorn in July 1893, aged 49, leaving £9,800 to be divided among his children. ==References==