Despite looking a far-more assured figure at the heart of Perth's midfield than the likes of Xavi Torres, Kilkenny couldn't prevent Perth slumping to a new-low of eighth position.

Despite the sacking of his coach, Kenny Lowe, and the departure of CEO Peter Filopoulos, Kilkenny is sticking by the club who showed faith in him when he was on the outer at Melbourne City.

He's even looking towards a future in coaching.

“I really enjoyed the couple of months that I spent at the club last season and it was good that we managed to improve our results in the later rounds,” he said.

“When the club offered me a three-year deal with a coaching job at the end of it, it was too good to turn down.

“Everyone who knows me knows that I have ambitions to be a coach and a manager and I appreciate the club recognising that potential in me and giving me the opportunity to take my first steps in fulfilling those ambitions in Perth.

“The club has the potential to be extremely successful with the right personnel on board who bring the right winning mentality and I want to be a part of that success.”

Glory’s Football Director Jacob Burns, believes Kilkenny made an instant impact.

“We saw last season what an impact Neil made when he came in,’’ he said.

“In addition to his influential performances in central midfield, he also showed great leadership qualities and is exactly the kind of quality player and quality character that we need to drive the club forward.”