Share
17th July 2018
08:48pm BST
"He's a brilliant shot-stopper. He's so comfortable on the ball. I think he's better than him (Anthony Nash). I think he's unbelievable," said the eight time All-Star.When you watch Murphy guard his nets with such distinction, with such mobility and with such grace, it begs the question as to whether this man would be a weapon out the field for Kilkenny. Let's not forget, we're talking about a Fitzgibbon Cup winning captain with WIT as a half forward, and an All-Ireland club winner from the same position.
And on the back of that, Damien Hayes asked of JJ the question that was busying everybody's lips.
"Could Kilkenny use him in the forward line, and Kilkenny maybe get a lesser goalie?" he said.Having played in front of him in the 2014 season, JJ knows just how calming Murphy's presence is for a full back, and indeed a whole back-line. While the worth of a goalie is often wrongly questioned, JJ feels that the 27-year-old has made himself the Cats' most valuable player over the last few years.
"If he got a good run at it, he would put his mind to it and you'd never know. He would not be too far away," began JJ. "But then you look at his performance yesterday and over the last couple of years. He's so settling, he's brilliant off his right or his left."Kilkenny couldn't afford to take him out of there. Indeed, Hayes made Colm Parkinson's job as GAA Hour host very easy, asking JJ all of the tough questions.
"How did he end up in goals, did he play underage in goals for Kilkenny or what? Was it just Kilkenny needed a goalie, and one day, you were all messing hitting shots on goals and next thing Cody seen him, and he was stuck there ever sense?" "He played in goal minor. When he came in with us, he was always a goalie," replied JJ.Indeed he was. Murphy was part of Kilkenny's minor team that won the All-Ireland all the way back in 2008, along with Wally Walsh and Conor Fogarty. If Damien Hayes was the Kilkenny manager, Murphy's career might have been oh so different.
"He's the most comfortable and the most natural goalkeeper on the ball in the country. It's like he's nearly playing at centre back. When he gets the ball he can go left or right and he can strike either way," said the Portumna man.You can listen to JJ, Damien and Wooly's thoughts on the weekend's action here. https://soundcloud.com/sportsjoe-gaa-hour/limerick-class-wexford-let-down-poor-attendances-explained
Explore more on these topics:
