Daryl Murphy: the boy for Brazil

HE WAS the 11-year-oldWaterford kid who fell in love with Brazil watching them in the World Cup and then wore the canary and blue replica jersey on the street as he attempted to emulate his exotic heroes from the small screen.

Now, 13 years on, Daryl Murphy is in line to share the Croke Park pitch with the Samba stars of today and he is almost pinching himself at the prospect.“You would have to be a Brazil fan,” says the Sunderland striker. “The football they play is unbelievable. The skill and everything about them, it’s how football should be played.

“When I was growing up and watching the World Cup and things like that, I really liked them. I had a Brazil jersey when I was younger when playing on the streets. I remember the World Cup in 1994 with the likes of Romario when some of the goals they scored were unbelievable. I was 11 at the time. That was about the time when I really started getting into football.