Kayla Jay McKenna (née McCoy; born 3 September 1996) is a professional footballer who plays as a forward for Spanish Liga F club Villarreal CF. Born in the United States, she plays for the Jamaica women's national team.
 McKenna with Jamaica in 2019 | |||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Kayla Jay McKenna | ||||||||||||||||
| Birth name | Kayla Jay McCoy[1] | ||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | 3 September 1996[2] | ||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Skokie, Illinois, U.S.[3] | ||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.70 m (5 ft 7 in)[3] | ||||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Forward[4] | ||||||||||||||||
| Team information | |||||||||||||||||
Current team | Villarreal | ||||||||||||||||
| Number | 12 | ||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||||||
| Eclipse Select | |||||||||||||||||
| Sockers FC Chicago | |||||||||||||||||
| College career | |||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||
| 2015–2018 | Duke Blue Devils | 82 | (38) | ||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||
| 2019–2020 | Houston Dash | 1 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2021–2023 | Rangers | 40 | (25) | ||||||||||||||
| 2023– | Villarreal | 10 | (3) | ||||||||||||||
| International career‡ | |||||||||||||||||
| 2018 | United States U23 | ||||||||||||||||
| 2019– | Jamaica | 6 | (2) | ||||||||||||||
Medal record
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*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 6 December 2023 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 28 February 2019 | |||||||||||||||||
Club career edit
Houston Dash edit
In April 2019, McCoy signed with the Houston Dash ahead of the 2019 season.[5][6]
Rangers edit
In May 2021, McCoy started training with Rangers,[7] leading to her signing with the club three months later.[8]
Villarreal edit
In July 2023, McKenna signed with Villarreal in Spain.[9]
International career edit
McCoy made her debut for Jamaica in a 1–0 friendly win against Chile on 28 February 2019.[10] She was named to the 23-player Jamaica squad for the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup in France.[1] However, because of a knee injury prior the tournament, she had to be replaced by Mireya Grey.[11]
International goals edit
Scores and results list Jamaica's goal tally first
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 February 2020 | H-E-B Park, Edinburg, United States |  Saint Kitts and Nevis |
6–0 | 7–0 | 2020 CONCACAF Women's Olympic Qualifying Championship |
| 2 | 7–0 |
Personal life edit
McCoy's grandparents were born in Jamaica.[12] Her grandfather is Pearnel Charles.[13] In June 2022, Kayla McCoy married Ciaran McKenna in Oak Park, Illinois, USA.[14]
Honours edit
Houston Dash
- NWSL Challenge Cup: 2020
Rangers
References edit
- ^ a b "FIFA Women's World Cup France 2019™ List of Players - Jamaica" (PDF). FIFA. 27 May 2019. p. 12. Retrieved 27 May 2019.
- ^ "Kayla McCoy". U.S. Soccer.
- ^ a b "Kayla McCoy Bio". Duke University Blue Devils.
- ^ "Kayla McCoy". Houston Dynamo. Archived from the original on 26 September 2020. Retrieved 25 April 2019.
- ^ "McCoy Officially Signs with Houston Dash". Duke University. 13 April 2019.
- ^ "Houston Dash sign six players for 2019 NWSL season | Houston Dynamo". houstondynamofc.
- ^ Falk, Graham (11 May 2021). "Kayla McCoy: Rangers boss confirms Jamaican international training with club". The Scotsman.
- ^ "Jamaica International Kayla McCoy Joins Rangers". Rangers. 4 August 2021.
- ^ https://villarrealcf.es/en/kayla-mckenna-is-now-a-yellow/
- ^ "Jamaica names Houston Dash forward Kayla McCoy to 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup preliminary roster". Houston Dash. 22 May 2019. Retrieved 27 May 2019.
- ^ "Houston Dash forward Kayla McCoy to miss 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup due to knee injury". Houston Dynamo. 6 June 2019. Retrieved 7 June 2019.
- ^ "Dash draft pick Kayla McCoy relishes new opportunity with Jamaica national team". Houston Dynamo. 4 February 2019. Retrieved 2 March 2019.
- ^ "Disappointing - Charles says family disappointed after granddaughter McKoy is ruled out of World Cup". Jamaica Gleaner. 6 June 2019. Retrieved 7 June 2019.
- ^ Walker, Howard (14 July 2022). "Reggae Girl McCoy's family lineage second to none". Jamaica Observer. Retrieved 28 March 2023.
External links edit
- Kayla McKenna at Soccerway
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