Former Kilkenny hurler Paul Murphy aiming for football success 

The 33-year-old retired from inter-county hurling last year

 Kilkenny's Paul Murphy. Mandatory Credit ©INPHO/Cathal Noonan 

Former Kilkenny hurler Paul Murphy says he is "more than happy to throw his lot in with the Kilkenny footballers", having been drafted in for the 2022 season.

Having retired from the small ball in 2021 with an impressive haul of four All-Ireland championships and four all-stars, Murphy said a call from football boss Christy Walsh was enough to persuade him to give the big ball a go for the year.

Murphy, 33, revealing the news on Off The Ball, said he wants to help get the footballers to Croke Park this year.

“Christy got in contact [with me] and I’m more than happy to throw my lot in with the Kilkenny footballers.

“We’re basically playing two matches this year. We’re playing Warwickshire on Friday night in Abbotstown. All going well, if we win that match, we’ll be playing a New York team in the final in Croke Park on the Sunday. That’s what lads are looking to play for, and it’s great.

“To go by the phrase, ‘The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago, and the second best time is now.’ You need to get the show back on the road, you need lads to put the shoulder to the wheel and get things going. I’m happy to do that and do a service for the footballers.

“And if we get a day out in Croke Park, brilliant. Very few men can say they wore a Kilkenny football jersey in Croke Park.”

The Danesfort clubman intends to take his inter-county football career year-by-year, noting that he'll decide on his involvement for 2023 after the dust settles in the current season.

Murphy said that Kilkenny need to aim to make it back into Division four in order to progress, but that may depend on players on the club scene opting in for the inter-county side.

“It’s probably a few years away and I think the only hurdle that has to be crossed is to get more players involved. At the moment, Kilkenny hasn’t got a system in place where players could easily manage playing club hurling and football, and then inter-county football. We know how the calendar sits and fits for inter-county hurling.

“Also, for players to get the space to step out from their clubs and play football, and for it to be recognised that they have inter-county football training, and that football has its space. At the moment, we’re training on Monday evenings so that has to be thrashed out first.

“They’re going to take beatings, but to get back into the mix. I think Kilkenny played Tipperary in Division 4, and look at where Tipperary have gone. They have savage strongholds in football. There are people in Kilkenny who want to play football. We have lads from football strongholds in Tyrone and Clare.

“The raw material is there to get it back up and going and there is a want to get it back up and going.”