12-year-old talented goalkeeper Keane Quinn is a future star in the making on the soccer pitch, after being chosen to compete in the Algarve Youth Cup in Portugal. The European tournament, which would see the Jordan Springs student be part of more than 200 teams from 5 continents around the world, was due to kick off this month. In the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, it was postponed, allowing Keane to further develop his skills before he heads overseas.
Keane attends Hills Sports High School and is part of the talented sports program (TSP) for soccer. He currently plays for Mount Druitt Town Rangers SAP and is in his third season with the club as their goalkeeper. He began playing soccer five years ago and has previously taken the field for Ropes Crossing Strikers FC and Nepean Soccer Club.
In January last year, he represented NSW and competed at the National Futsal Competition. Shortly after, he was selected in the Australian team to compete in Hawaii in two tournaments in December. He was one of two goalkeepers selected to play in the team.
“Keane is mostly excited about the prospect of potentially playing against the Manchester United Youth team. Playing in the Algarve Youth Cup will allow him to see where his skill set is at against kids from around the world” explained Arlene Blencowe, Keane’s mother who is an Australian MMA and boxing champion.
“My dream is to play for Manchester United in the future. My favourite player is David De Gea, the Manchester United Goalkeeper. I would like to play in his position for the team” said an excited Keane.
Keane’s stepfather Dion Shaw is also a goalkeeper and currently plays for Marconi Stallions in the NPL1 competition.
“Dion is a player that Keane looks up to and admires. He has played through the youth league, A-League and travelled representing Australia and this is something that Keane wants to do too” replied Arlene to the Jordan Springs Gazette.
A fundraising raffle for Keane was also recently run on Arlene’s social media channels to help assist with his Portuguese trip.