Gilbert George Kennedy (9 May 1844 – 2 January 1909) was a Scottish amateur sportsman who played for the Scottish XI in the second international football match against England. He was also a regular member of the Wanderers club and an occasional cricketer. By profession, he was a police magistrate and Justice of the Peace.
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Family and education
Kennedy was born in Bath, the son of John Kennedy and Amelia Maria Briggs. His father, who died in March 1845, had been the British Chargé d'affaires in Naples, Italy and the Secretary of Legation to the US. His great-grandfather was Archibald Kennedy, 11th Earl of Cassilis.
His elder brothers were: Admiral Sir William Robert Kennedy GCB (1838–1916), who became Commander-in-Chief, The Nore; Sir John Gordon Kennedy K.C.M.G. (1836–1912), who became an eminent diplomat; Edward Briggs Kennedy (1842-1914), who went to Queensland, Australia, and after a brief period in the Queensland Native Police established a sugar plantation there- his son, Captain Edward Kennedy, of the Royal Navy, was father of the broadcaster Ludovic Kennedy.
Kennedy was educated at Harrow School from 1858 to 1863. In his final year he was a member of the school football XI. He then went up to Trinity College, Cambridge from where he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1868. In 1868, he won a blue in athletics in the three-mile race and one year later won the 4 miles walk event at the 1867 AAC Championships.