Brian Murphy is considered by many to be the best goalkeeper in the League of Ireland, but is he good enough for an international call-up?.
For the last two seasons, the Bohemians number one has been in fantastic form and played a pivtoal role in helping the Dublin club to win the league and cup double last year.
It was during that title winning campaign that the calls for him to be included in the Republic of Ireland squad were first mooted. With not that many Irish keepers playing regularly for their clubs in the UK, it was suggested that Murphy deserved a closer look from the Irish coaching staff.
While it has been some time since a League of Ireland player won an international cap for The Boys In Green – current Bohs striker Jason Byrne was the last one, if I’m not mistaken – the debate about whether players from the domestic game should be considered is one that refuses to go away.
Murphy has been crowned the Best Goalkeeper in the League of Ireland for the past two seasons. That might not mean much for people unaware of his talent, but for those that know this league, they will be aware of the many other quality keepers at other clubs.
He has not won plaudits from fellow professionals, pundits, expert journalists, and managers for nothing. They have all recognised his skills and would be in agreement that he is capable of playing at a higher level.
It was rumoured that several clubs in England and Scotland were interested in signing Murphy this year after watching him produce heroics in the FAI Ford Cup final win over Derry City, but nothing happened.
Obviously for Bohemians that was a major plus as they got to hang on to their prized shot-stopper, at least for another few months. He remains very ambitious and wants to represent his country, but he may have to move back across the Irish Sea if that is to happen.
It is a sad state of affairs that one of the best players in the Irish game has to move to the UK in order to be selected for his country, but that is the way it seems to be right now. Hopefully it can change and it would be great is Murphy was the one to break the mould.
Having started his career off in the youth ranks at Manchester City, the Waterford-born keeper went on loan spells to Oldham Athletic and Peterbrough United before joining Swansea City in 2003.
He spent a few years with the Welsh club without ever really getting a look in and then came back to Ireland. Sean Connor signed him for Bohs and he has been the number one pretty much since his arrival.
As he continues to improve his game and help Bohs stay in the hunt for more silverware, Murphy is driven by the hope of one day earning a full international cap.
Perhaps he will sneak into Giovanni Trapattoni’s squad for the upcoming friendly against Australia, but if he doesn’t he will still keep working as hard as he can to make that breakthrough.
International caps are what keep a lot of players going and Murphy is no different as he feels that he is playing as good as he ever has in his career and that he can be a good option for Ireland.
For now, he will do what he can to help Bohs pick up more wins. But as the chants of ‘Super Keeper’ ring out from the Dalymount faithful, it is becoming clearer with each match that this is a player deserving of some international recognition.