Murray enjoys Rovers return
SOCCER
Daire Walsh
DESPITE announcing his retirement from League of Ireland football at the end of the 2015 season, former Cork City captain Dan Murray was back on FAI Cup duties at the Tallaght Stadium last Friday evening.
Murray now lines out for Munster Senior League outfit Midleton – who suffered a 4-0 defeat to Shamrock Rovers in the second round of the competition – and he enjoyed being back on the stage that he thought he had left behind.
“I enjoyed it. It’s always a nice place to come back to,” said Murray.
“It’s one of the better stadiums in the country, so it’s great to come back.
“I never thought I’d be coming back, I’ll be honest, when I retired at the end of last year, but it was enjoyable for the most part,” Murray stated after their loss to Rovers. “It didn’t feel like a 4-0 game. Bit disappointed to lose 4-0, but they showed that they’re a good team and fitter than us, and they deserved to beat us.”
In between his two spells with Cork City, Murray spent two years with Shamrock Rovers – where he won three major trophies under current Northern Ireland manager Michael O’Neill.
As a result, he was well aware of the prestige that comes with playing the Hoops in the FAI Cup, and he believes it was a great experience for the other players in the squad.
“I think it’s a great experience to come up here. One of the best teams in the country, one of the best stadiums in the country, and try and give it our everything.
“I think we were a little bit disappointed with the result, but probably wished we’d played a little bit better as well.
“It’s a learning curve, and we can take it on for the rest of our season in the league, and the couple of cups we’ve got left really. That’s what it’s all about for the younger lads especially.”
Although he is best known as a centre-half, Murray has played in midfield more often than not for Midleton this season. Injuries ensured that he moved to the heart of the defence on Friday, but he is happy to play in any position with the Magpies.
“I’ve been playing midfield probably most of the time. I think one of our lads pulled his hamstring, he’d been playing centre-half most of the time. I’ll play anywhere, to be honest.
“When I finished playing with Cork, I just wanted to play for the enjoyment really, and that’s the case. Great set of lads, and good club to play for, and I’m enjoying it so far and that’s the reason why I’m still playing really,” Murray added.