The young midfielder started his career at Coleraine in Northern Ireland, where he spent one season with the senior team after making his debut in November 2021. 

This attracted the attention of Premier League West Ham, who signed Kelly in June 2022. 

Kelly player for West Ham’s under 18s and under 21s, however never made a first team appearance for the Hammers. 

He was loaned to Doncaster Rovers in the 24/25 season, where he played 30 times in League Two scoring two goals as Donny went on to win the League Two title. 

Kelly then moved to Barnsley in the 2025/26 season on a free transfer. 

Kelly made his debut in Barnsley’s 3-1 away win at Plymouth in early August 2025 and for his first few appearances, was deployed as part of the double pivot in midfield. 

The Northern Irishman scored his first goal for Barnsley away at Bradford on 18 October 2025, where he was deployed in the number 10 position and made a run into the box to get on the end of a low cross. 

After this, Barnsley head coach Conor Hourihane started playing Kelly in the number 10 position permanently, and this is where Kelly’s performances went up a level. 

Kelly has two goals and two assists in League One this campaign, a fair return however it is dribbling and ball carrying where Kelly really excels for the Tykes. 

Kelly can often be seen carrying the ball long distances across the large Oakwell pitch, before playing a key pass into one of Barnsley’s attackers. 

Using Fotmob, when compared to other attacking midfielders/ wingers, Kelly averages 2.22 successful dribbles per 90, which is in the 91st percentile showing he is one of the best dribblers in the division. 

A 50.9% successful dribbles rate, which is in the 77th percentile also demonstrates Kelly’s key attribute. 

Kelly’s strength in possession is Barnsley’s gain, as it helps the Reds’ counter-attacking ability, which was seen away at Doncaster where Kelly won the ball from an opponent before then driving up the pitch and finding teammate Davis Keillor-Dunn who finished well. 

It's not just in possession where Kelly is strong, as the tenacious midfielder also offers a lot out of possession when it comes to pressing opponents and winning the ball back. 

Kelly makes 1.98 tackles per 90, which is in the 78th percentile, wins 6.18 duels per 90 which is in the 77th percentile and wins 49% of his duels, which is in the 90th percentile. 

Therefore, Kelly has a distinct profile which suits Hourihane’s system well and it is fair to say he is one of the first names on the Barnsley team sheet. 

While Barnsley’s Reyes Cleary gets a lot of plaudits and rightly so for his outstanding season, he is allowed to be so effective in the final third due to Kelly winning duels, carrying the ball up the pitch and finding him on the wing where Cleary can take on his fullback. 

So, with Kelly offering so much in and out of possession it was no surprise to see him receive his first senior Northern Ireland call up in the November 2025 international break, where he made his debut against Luxembourg, entering the pitch in the second half. 

Recently, Barnsley boss Conor Hourihane said Patrick Kelly was playing: “out of his skin” and if the youngster keeps these performance levels up, there will no doubt be suitors from higher leagues. 

It would be no surprise to see Patrick Kelly playing at a high level in the future, with the Premier League surely beckoning if he keeps improving his game.