Mark Keane Biography

Sam Powell-Pepper will miss the first four games of the 2024 AFL season following a bump on Crow Mark Keane in a match simulation that left the Irishman concussed and deemed to be "very reckless" by the AFL Tribunal.

Mark Keane signs with Adelaide for the 2023 AFL season during the pre-season supplemental signing period.

The Irishman spent three seasons on the Magpies' list as a Category B rookie from 2019 to 2021, before returning home in August 2021. He returned briefly for pre-season training in November, but opted to retire from the game after five senior appearances.

"I never lost the passion to play the sport and when the opportunity arose to come back it was something I obviously considered very strongly," Keane said.

"The circumstances are right and so is the timing on the back of winning an All Ireland Grand Final with my club Ballygiblin.

"I will be able to have my family and friends fly out and visit which will make a big difference and I’ll also have the support of my partner Caoimha who will be moving to Adelaide as well so we are very excited about what lies ahead."

Mark Keane is open to a return to the AFL, four months after he walked away from a contract at the Magpies.

"I still love AFL. I've probably watched every single game so far this year. I've been watching the boys and all the teams. I still kick around here at home," Keane said from Ireland.

"It is anyone's dream to go over and play AFL. I definitely wouldn’t rule it out to go back and play. Collingwood has been riddled by injuries, so I definitely wouldn’t rule it out."

Mark Keane is in doubt for the start of the 2021 season after undergoing finger tendon surgery.

Darcy Moore, Josh Daicos, and Mark Keane sign two-year extensions with Collingwood to remain at the club until the end of 2022.

"Clearly, given the ages of all three players, there is significant upside," Collingwood list manager Ned Guy said.

"Even for someone like Darcy, who is now and All-Australian, his peak years are ahead and with Josh and Mark they have so much scope to develop. We expect all of them to be important to Collingwood for many years to come."

Mark Keane makes his AFL debut for Collingwood at Perth Stadium with 7 disposals (5 kicks and 2 handballs), a mark and 2 tackles in a 12-point loss to Fremantle.

Six players in Ireland will return to Australia this weekend to resume their AFL careers after winning visa approval to re-enter the country.

Collingwood pair Mark Keane and Anton Tohill, Essendon duo Cian McBride and Ross McQuillan, Brisbane's James Madden, and Greater Western Sydney's Callum Brown are all set to jet back to Australia on Saturday.

The group headed back to Ireland once the AFL announced its shutdown plans in March due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

Conor McKenna and his Bombers teammates Ross McQuillan and Cian McBride, as well as Magpies duo Anton Tohill and Mark Keane, and Giants youngster Callum Brown, are among a handful of players who have either returned to Ireland or are expected to imminently as the COVID-19 crisis continues to accelerate worldwide.

Collingwood has wasted little time in getting Irish recruits Anton Tohill and Mark Keane settled into professional life in Australia, putting them through a light skills session on their first day at the club.

"Their kicking, their handball and marking looks pretty sound at the moment, although just getting used to our ball is a challenge for them," Magpies head of academy Tarkyn Lockyer said.

"The boys don't get a huge amount of contact in the Gaelic game so we'll have to teach them the rules about how you can use your body and your hands in marking contests.

"From a competitive point of view, both boys look like they're willing to have a crack so that doesn't look like that's going to be too much of an issue."

Collingwood sign Irish 18-year olds Mark Keane and Anton Tohill as Category B rookies.

"Mark and Anton will really add to our developing key-position depth," Collingwood's national recruiting manager Derek Hine said.

"They are different to each other in the manner in which they play. Anton has the makings of a tall utility who will be capable at both ends of the ground, with the potential to play minutes in the ruck.

"Mark is very strong overhead and has natural game sense. We can see him playing as a key forward or key defender."

Irish prospects Anton Tohill and Mark Keane believe they've shown enough to deserve a spot on an AFL list, and several clubs are interested in signing the promising duo.

After impressing at the Dublin Combine last December and at the AFL Academy's camp in Florida in January, the youngsters earned an invitation to this week's NAB AFL Draft Combine, and produced impressive results.

"Footy is for me, I want to give it a good crack. I want to do the best I can and do whatever I can to play professional footy," Tohill said.

"My parents hadn't heard much about the AFL when I was first approached, so they were a bit shocked (when the AFL approached me), but they want what's best for me and this is what I want to do," Keane said.