Player Profile

In an age of bland, media-trained professional footballers with few interests outside the game, McKirdy was always likely to stand out. A slender figure with long, greasy hair and a habit of wearing the smallest shinpads he could find with his socks pulled halfway down his shins, McKirdy is a recognisable figure on the field as well as off it - where his unorthodox Gen Z fashion sense made bucket hats the must-have fashion item for the discerning Town fan.

Signed in July 2021 after a successful trial, McKirdy was believed to be something of a troubled talent, having lasted less than a year at Carlisle United and Port Vale, leaving the latter in fairly acrimonious circumstances. The signing felt at the time like a calculated gamble, and if it was, it was a lottery win. McKirdy scored on his debut - the third goal in a 3-1 win at Scunthorpe, and went from cult hero to the subject of full on adoration as his form improved throughout the season and his character - irreverent and cheeky at its best, petulant and childish at its worst - shone through.

With a character like McKirdy, there were bound to be ups and downs, and no fewer than 12 yellow cards across the season - almost all for dissent to referees - led to a few needless suspensions which disrupted his season and had at least some Town fans grumbling. They were more than balanced out by the good though - four goals against Northampton on New Year’s Day, a magnificent consolation goal against Manchester City in the FA Cup and and two-goal masterclass against former club Port Vale in the home leg of Town’s playoff semi-final were just some of the highlights of a season which saw him named to the League Two team of the season and sweep the club’s end of season awards. Sadly, his season ended on a sour note with a skied penalty in the shootout against Port Vale - much to the amusement of the Vale fans and Kevin Ellison, the 43 year-old Newport County player who had engaged in something of a social media feud with McKirdy over the season.

McKirdy’s departure to Hibernian at the end of the Summer 2022 transfer window was well trailed, but still disappointing to Town fans. True to form though, McKirdy still managed an action-packed five games before being sold, picking up a first half red card for two very soft yellow cards against Salford in Town’s first home game, before returning from suspension with goals in consecutive games against Leyton Orient and Rochdale. On deadline day, an undisclosed fee was agreed for a move north of the border and the transfer was confirmed despite Town submitting their side of the documentation after the midnight deadline ahead of an announcement at 1:20 AM. It was a sad, low key end to a Town career that shone briefly, but brightly.

And then, like a lightbulb that hasn’t quite blown, McKirdy’s Town career flickered back into life in January 2024, but well short of its full power. After a difficult spell at Hibernian including diagnosis of a heart concern that required surgery and kept him out of football for six months, Town re-signed McKirdy on loan as part of his recovery. Fans were to see very little of him on the pitch and only flashes of the player he had been, but we did get one moment: an injury time equaliser against Gillingham after coming on as a substitute.

McKirdy would only start one game for Town in his second spell, but he did give the club a lift at a difficult time and was prominent behind the scenes, particularly at Junior Reds events.

Playing Record

Senior

Career details

Club	Details
Stoke City Stoke City	2004 (schoolboy)
Aston Villa Aston Villa	2011 (academy) May 2013 (youth scholarship) July 1st, 2015 (signed professional contract); released (rptd May 30th, 2019)
Stevenage Stevenage	August 31st, 2016 (loan); expired (rptd January 7th, 2017)
Crewe Alexandra Crewe Alexandra	January 19th, 2018 (loan); expired (2017/8)
Newport County Newport County	January 31st, 2019 (loan); expired (2018/9)
Carlisle United Carlisle United	July 1st, 2019 (announced June 11th, 2019) (unattached); released (rptd May 15th, 2020)
Port Vale Port Vale	September 11th, 2020 (unattached); released (rptd May 10th, 2021)
Leicester City Leicester City	rptd February 16th, 2021 (trial)
Swindon Town Swindon	rptd August 4th, 2021 (unattached); transferred out (rptd September 2nd, 2022)
Hibernian Hibernian	rptd September 2nd, 2022 (transferred in, undisclosed fee)
Swindon Town Swindon	February 1st, 2024 (loan); expired (rptd May 2nd, 2024)