It didn’t come as a complete surprise to former Donegal manager Declan Bonner when he heard that Michael Murphy was retiring from intercounty football.
He had spoken with his former captain in the weeks after the county’s championship departure last June and felt that one of the most admired of careers in contemporary football might well be nearing its end.
People familiar with Murphy’s on-field exploits mightn’t necessarily be aware that it’s just part of the story of intercounty commitment, which he has been demonstrating for half of his life at this stage.
“Michael’s been there since he was 17 and he’s now 33,” says Bonner, “so that’s nearly half his life playing intercounty football. What’s not so well known is how dedicated he was to the whole thing. He would be first man on the pitch at training sessions and last man off and he would have treated every training session like a championship match in terms of preparation and involvement.
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“He had a few knocks and soft-tissue injuries but was managing. The trouble for Michael was that he was physically targeted all the time. Now, he loved the physicality of football and was well fit to give it as well as take it but eventually that takes its toll over the years.”
Murphy’s career has coincided with one of the great eras for the county. He has won league, provincial championship and All-Ireland honours in the course of his 16 years involved at senior level. As an under-21 he led Donegal to the threshold of All-Ireland success, only to lose to Dublin after he missed a penalty in the final.
“He was made senior captain shortly after leading the under-21s,” says Bonner, “and under his captaincy there were five Ulster titles, an All-Ireland and [he] could have won a second in 2014. Over the same period, it shouldn’t be forgotten that his club went from junior to winning three senior championships.
“Michael was a colossal player and the complete package. People ask was he the best ever and in my mind there’s no doubt in terms of what he delivered overall; what he delivered on match days, what he brought to the training ground and what he brought even outside of football was huge.”
His leadership was seen on the international stage when Paul Earley appointed him Ireland captain for the 2013 International Rules series. He took it so seriously that he played the first test on the same weekend his club Glenswilly played a county final. Of course, he won both, scoring 1-5 in what was a second county title for Glenswilly.
Bonner has little doubt that Murphy will become a manager at the highest level, having observed him as a player and the influence he wielded with his dressing-room.
“I think because he could play every facet of the game, every facet of the game intrigued him. He was so eager to learn and picked up different things from all of the different managers he had, good, bad or indifferent and he would retain it all in a training diary or whatever – what worked and what didn’t work.
“He’s a very smart reader of the game and, aside from his technical abilities, his presence means that any player in that dressing-room is going to sit up and pay attention out of respect for who he is and what he has done.
“I have no doubt that he will learn quickly. He’s taken on the college role, managed Sigerson teams and minors. Whether he goes straight into the academy or takes up the senior role in a few years, that will be his choice. I’ve no doubt that he will be successful. He is driven and will have high expectations of players.”
Bonner also believes Murphy’s pride in representing his county is bound up with the sense of identity he has always felt for his community, starting with Glenswilly.
“He’s so passionate about GAA and Donegal and the importance of representing the county and what it means. That consciousness of identity goes back to the club.
“For now though, he’s a big loss for 2023 but there are a number of players in their late 20s. Knowing them, I think they will step up in leadership terms now that two colossal men – remember, Neil McGee is gone as well – have called it a day.
“He’s getting married next year and is Head of Sport in ATU [Atlantic Technological University] Donegal in Letterkenny, which is a demanding job and I’m sure Glenswilly will be seeing more of him so it’s not like he won’t be busy!”
Bonner too has been busy since stepping away from the Donegal manager’s job last summer. His son Cillian has enrolled at the ProKick Academy in Melbourne with a view to winning an American football scholarship for a college in the US.
“He’s doing fine at the moment,” he says. “The academy is run by Nathan Chapman and John Smith and has a high rate of success sending on to colleges in the US. Cillian is specifically training to be a punt kicker and he’s enjoying it so far.”
