Colm O’Rourke thinks Michael Murphy is a wonderful player but, when it comes to Footballer of the Decade talk, he doesn’t think the Donegal man isn’t up there with the Dubs of this world.
Sean Cavanagh reckons he is. Noelle Healy didn’t get a word in. And, as she watched on, Joanne Cantwell could hardly believe that, twenty minutes before the ball was going to be thrown-in for the Ulster final, the boys were smack bang in the middle of a debate that would be more suited to a bar-stool, or a pseudonym-dominated message-forum.
But none-the-less, that was where we found ourselves. O’Rourke was the one who started it, you’d have to say, and, without further ado, we might as well just take back to where it all started.
Sean Cavanagh: I don’t think you can trust them (Donegal.) We always end up going back to McBrearty, Murphy. They’ve had lots of players over the last five/six years who have promised a lot and hasn’t really delivered.
Colm O’Rourke: But you said Murphy was the best player of the last decade.
Cavanagh: Well yeah but, he can’t win games on his own unfortunately. When it comes to an Ulster final or All-Ireland quarter final and somebody stops Murphy and they don’t have enough coming from back the field.
O’Rourke: But you can’t say that either and that’s sort of Jim McGuinness nonsense as well. The best players of the last decade are those who have performed at the highest possible level on a continuous basis in semi-finals and finals. Not in Clones, not in Ballybofey.
Cavanagh: Michael Murphy can’t be winning ball in midfield, he can’t be scoring 1-6 every single game because against the best teams, they nullify the best players.
O’Rourke: Yes, but then he’s not the best players.
Cavanagh: Well who is the best players?
So in Colm O Rourkes opinion the only great players are the ones who have performed in an All Ireland final on a consistent basis? He’s basically after saying the only great players at the moment are from Dublin. Don’t know bout that now ?? pic.twitter.com/NQpiajHYCW
— Rory Jacob (@RoryJacob) May 29, 2022
O’Rourke: Well if you want to take them in order, James McCarthy, Brian Fenton, Ciaran Kilkenny.
Cavanagh: James McCarthy is, he’s a stopper himself.
O’Rourke: Hold on, let me make my point, they have performed consistently, over a decade at the very highest level in every single game in Croke Park. How could anyone else be compared to that?
Cavanagh: Fenton has performed because he’s got Kilkenny in front of him, O’Callaghan in front of him, he had Brogan, Flynn, Connolly. All these guys take the heat.
O’Rourke: You have said it, he has performed, and that is the essence of greatness. You’ve performed in All-Ireland finals, Peter Canavan performed in All-Ireland finals.
Cavanagh: So has Michael Murphy, do you not remember him scoring against Mayo?
O’Rourke: I also remember him against Kerry, when he was very easily put out of that final. So you can’t compare the Dublin players with anybody else because they have been the best by far, and their record proves it.
Cavanagh: Whenever we were setting up against Dublin, you had no idea where to put out the fire. You had six forwards coming at you. Against Donegal, you can put out that fire, you just put two men on him.
In more important news, Derry are Ulster champions for the first time since 1998.
This guy 👌 pic.twitter.com/BqXvPVtEOq
— GAA JOE (@GAA__JOE) May 29, 2022
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