Murphy moulding future as Galway on the move

Sure, there was a huge degree of personal satisfaction involved in watching Galway’s march to an All-Ireland senior hurling final but Mattie Murphy is not one to go shouting about his contribution from the rooftops.

Twelve of the 19 players who featured for Galway against Cork in last Sunday’s semi-final passed through Murphy’s hands in the minor ranks. The former school principal, now 62, is in the fifth year of a third spell at the helm and targeting a seventh All-Ireland minor title from 12 attempts.

He managed the seniors for two spells (1994-’96 and 1998-2000) and the passion exhibited by Galway’s fans in Dublin last weekend took him back to the 1980s and the golden era for hurling in the county. Joe Canning, Niall Donohue, Johnny Coen, Niall Burke, David Burke, Cyril Donnellan — just some of the stars that Murphy has nurtured.