Murphy feels pain of missing World Cup
The 25-year-old Leicester star was stretchered off midway through the first-half, ending his hopes of displaying his immense talents in the sport’s showpiece event which gets underway in Australia on October 10, and dealing a serious blow to Ireland’s dreams of World Cup glory.
He told the BBC that he knew immediately that something dreadful had happened when he was tackled by Scotland back Mike Blair.
“At first, I said to myself that ‘hey I’ve done something bad here’. Then I thought maybe it was just sprained but I quickly realised that it was broken. I’ve had plenty of bumps and bruises but I’ve never broken anything.
“I knew there was something wrong when I hit the deck.
“It all happened through a variety of things. I got my toe stuck on the ground, and with my weight going forward and something hitting me low, it just went,” said the Leicester star, whose buccaneering runs played a large part in Ireland’s successful Six Nations tournament last season.
Murphy went home from hospital yesterday but said while the bone would heal the mental scars of missing the World Cup would take longer to mend.
“It will take me a while to get over the disappointment,” he said. “I’m still a little bit shocked by it all.
“I was really looking forward to participating in the World Cup. But it’s just one of those things. I will just have to get on with it.
“They have put a nail into the bone to help the healing process. They have not put an exact date or time span on my recovery, but they reckon about six months (which will mean missing the early part of the European Cup as well as the first matches in the Six Nations).”
Murphy said it was highly unlikely he would watch the incident on video. Ireland coach Eddie O’Sullivan had revealed he had advised the players not to stand over him while he was tended to so bad was the injury.
“I have been told about it, and I believe it is not very pleasant. Everyone says not to look at it. I just might take that advice,” admitted the two-time European Cup winner.
lAn inquiry into alleged racism within the Springbok World Cup squad was delayed yesterday by a dispute over television coverage, while the country’s sport minister has called for a wider probe into discrimination in the sport.
Lawyers for national public broadcaster SABC were expected to meet retired judge Edwin King and two co-panellists today to discuss the possible live broadcast of the hearings, following a court decision Monday which bars the broadcaster from the closed-door proceedings.
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