AFTER THE SEAGULLS had arrived to nose in around the half-empty bags of chips, one man stood by himself at Croke Park pitch side; Michael Murphy.
It had the feeling of a long goodbye. Someone who knows him of old approached him, immediately sensed the vibe, and left him to it.
From this vignette, we are taking it that Michael Murphy will soon be retiring for the second time.
Turning 37 in August, Murphy has given 18 seasons to Donegal. He is without question their best player, their most treasured son. He has been a Hot Shot Hamish of the Donegal Highlands and the man they turned to, all the time.
They could have been gone here at the end of normal time, but for him.
While Donegal got a lucky break with referee Martin McNally moving a free up to the two-point line, Murphy showed what his legacy has been built on, but also another, darker side.
He kicked the two-pointer, naturally. But then he barged into Ciarán Kilkenny straight away. He was angry. He may have had reason, we don’t know. But it prompted the kind of ugly brawling that Donegal have been involved in a lot over the last couple of seasons.
Michael Murphy with the last kick of the game sends it to extra-time followed by some unsavoury scenes afterwards
In coming back after two years away from county football, Murphy emerged in great shape. His first act though, was to immediately get into a tangle with Aidan Forker at Ballybofey.
There was a great symbolism in this. Armagh arrived into Ballybofey as All-Ireland champions. Forker was their captain. Donegal were there to put manners on their house guests and Forker lost himself in his rage, aiming a lunge of the head at Murphy, therefore getting a deserved red card.
That was on 16 February 2025. Murphy was immediately put into cold storage again and raced lightly throughout that spring until the summer.
They secured an Ulster title and reached an All-Ireland final. Murphy was then exposed by Kerry’s tactics of pairing him up with the former international schoolboy sprinter Jason Foley, forcing him to track Foley’s runs across the pitch.
Defeat to Kerry hit Donegal hard. It particularly left a dinge on manager Jim McGuinness.
This is the first time McGuinness has been beaten three times in a season. It took three years in his first spell to be beaten three times.
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When he talks after these defeats; to Down, Cork and Dublin, he reasons, perhaps not unreasonably, that the shortened preparation time is a factor.
Closer scrutiny shows this to be wobbly logic. They had four weeks after the league final to prepare for a Down team who just about held on for a Division 3 league final win over Wexford. On the day, Down were brilliant in Letterkenny and Donegal looked exhausted.
McGuinness is known to demand a lot from his players. That can then be seen in the energy they expend in carrying the ball and cutting impressive angles for each other. But that takes enormous appetite and Donegal have been jaded since they blitzed the league.
In his first spell as manager, McGuinness had 20 principles of Gaelic football. After training, the team would mark themselves out of five for complying with those 20 principles. The principles were entirely matters under their control within a game, but when the game has lost all control, as he admits under the new rules, then you either surf the wave or you get caught in the barrel.
Jim McGuinness with Murphy after last year's Ulster final. Ben Brady / INPHO
Ben Brady / INPHO / INPHO
The defeat in last year’s All-Ireland final will continue to eat at him. The lack of a man-marker on Paudie Clifford was obvious to everybody in the ground and the entire TV audience around the globe.
On the sideline, he appeared in deep conclave with his selectors, Colm McFadden, Neil McGee and Luke Barrett.
Nothing changed.
Nothing, except Barrett left in the close season.
There is a suspicion that McGuinness was not willing to dissenting voices on tactical matters. That suspicion turned into something harder after the first league game this year, a win over Dublin as it happens, when he scolded reporters for asking if he felt Donegal could win an All-Ireland by retaining a zonal defence.
His answer was that he didn’t take anyone’s opinions on board unless they had won an All-Ireland. If he is true to that, then it’s a pretty small pool of advisers indeed.
What was glaring here was the lack of faith in his panel. He took off four players and later sent them on again.
None of this is to make a case that McGuinness would be considering stepping down.
What else would he be doing?
It has been seven years since he was involved meaningfully in professional soccer and that body of work was one win in 14 matches in charge of Charlotte Independence before he was relieved.
There is always a chance he could land a gig managing a League of Ireland team. Does anyone think this is a runner?
Donegal county board, made up of club delegates, would hardly be keen on making a move against him. There is no mood of mutiny, and he has too much credit in the bank for that.
He will continue on, but he will do so without Murphy.
2026 truly felt like a Last Dance for Murphy. Had they won Sam Maguire last year, he wouldn’t have been out this season. Even after winning an All-Star.
A certain anxiety to win seems to have gripped him though.
While he has always had a bite to his tackle, and a tendency to tackle with the closed fist, he is not alone in the game on that.
Murphy charges for Ciarán Kilkenny. Laszlo Geczo
Laszlo Geczo
His fist making contact with Kerry’s Dylan Casey in the league final though, felt something else altogether. Further skirmishes throughout this year have been added to his rap sheet.
His desperation to win feels as though it has compromised his behaviours. Against Cork, a challenge bordering on nasty and robust, was seized upon by the Cork players, urging the referee to punish him with a red.
Against Dublin, he was beaten under kickouts and susceptible to some mind games.
By the end, after serving his 10-minute suspension for a black card and coming on for the second period of extra time, the Dublin crowd were booing his every touch.
Away from the pitch, there are no end of stories about Murphy being a perfect gentleman. McGuinness once noted that everyone who ever sends him a good luck or well done text, gets a reply. That he couldn’t live with himself if he didn’t.
His competitive spirit has overridden his nature over the last few months. But it shouldn’t cast a lasting shadow on what was a remarkable career.
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Is this the end for Donegal's most treasured son Michael Murphy?
AFTER THE SEAGULLS had arrived to nose in around the half-empty bags of chips, one man stood by himself at Croke Park pitch side; Michael Murphy.
It had the feeling of a long goodbye. Someone who knows him of old approached him, immediately sensed the vibe, and left him to it.
From this vignette, we are taking it that Michael Murphy will soon be retiring for the second time.
Turning 37 in August, Murphy has given 18 seasons to Donegal. He is without question their best player, their most treasured son. He has been a Hot Shot Hamish of the Donegal Highlands and the man they turned to, all the time.
They could have been gone here at the end of normal time, but for him.
While Donegal got a lucky break with referee Martin McNally moving a free up to the two-point line, Murphy showed what his legacy has been built on, but also another, darker side.
He kicked the two-pointer, naturally. But then he barged into Ciarán Kilkenny straight away. He was angry. He may have had reason, we don’t know. But it prompted the kind of ugly brawling that Donegal have been involved in a lot over the last couple of seasons.
In coming back after two years away from county football, Murphy emerged in great shape. His first act though, was to immediately get into a tangle with Aidan Forker at Ballybofey.
There was a great symbolism in this. Armagh arrived into Ballybofey as All-Ireland champions. Forker was their captain. Donegal were there to put manners on their house guests and Forker lost himself in his rage, aiming a lunge of the head at Murphy, therefore getting a deserved red card.
That was on 16 February 2025. Murphy was immediately put into cold storage again and raced lightly throughout that spring until the summer.
They secured an Ulster title and reached an All-Ireland final. Murphy was then exposed by Kerry’s tactics of pairing him up with the former international schoolboy sprinter Jason Foley, forcing him to track Foley’s runs across the pitch.
Defeat to Kerry hit Donegal hard. It particularly left a dinge on manager Jim McGuinness.
This is the first time McGuinness has been beaten three times in a season. It took three years in his first spell to be beaten three times.
When he talks after these defeats; to Down, Cork and Dublin, he reasons, perhaps not unreasonably, that the shortened preparation time is a factor.
Closer scrutiny shows this to be wobbly logic. They had four weeks after the league final to prepare for a Down team who just about held on for a Division 3 league final win over Wexford. On the day, Down were brilliant in Letterkenny and Donegal looked exhausted.
McGuinness is known to demand a lot from his players. That can then be seen in the energy they expend in carrying the ball and cutting impressive angles for each other. But that takes enormous appetite and Donegal have been jaded since they blitzed the league.
In his first spell as manager, McGuinness had 20 principles of Gaelic football. After training, the team would mark themselves out of five for complying with those 20 principles. The principles were entirely matters under their control within a game, but when the game has lost all control, as he admits under the new rules, then you either surf the wave or you get caught in the barrel.
The defeat in last year’s All-Ireland final will continue to eat at him. The lack of a man-marker on Paudie Clifford was obvious to everybody in the ground and the entire TV audience around the globe.
On the sideline, he appeared in deep conclave with his selectors, Colm McFadden, Neil McGee and Luke Barrett.
Nothing changed.
Nothing, except Barrett left in the close season.
There is a suspicion that McGuinness was not willing to dissenting voices on tactical matters. That suspicion turned into something harder after the first league game this year, a win over Dublin as it happens, when he scolded reporters for asking if he felt Donegal could win an All-Ireland by retaining a zonal defence.
His answer was that he didn’t take anyone’s opinions on board unless they had won an All-Ireland. If he is true to that, then it’s a pretty small pool of advisers indeed.
What was glaring here was the lack of faith in his panel. He took off four players and later sent them on again.
None of this is to make a case that McGuinness would be considering stepping down.
What else would he be doing?
It has been seven years since he was involved meaningfully in professional soccer and that body of work was one win in 14 matches in charge of Charlotte Independence before he was relieved.
There is always a chance he could land a gig managing a League of Ireland team. Does anyone think this is a runner?
Donegal county board, made up of club delegates, would hardly be keen on making a move against him. There is no mood of mutiny, and he has too much credit in the bank for that.
He will continue on, but he will do so without Murphy.
2026 truly felt like a Last Dance for Murphy. Had they won Sam Maguire last year, he wouldn’t have been out this season. Even after winning an All-Star.
A certain anxiety to win seems to have gripped him though.
While he has always had a bite to his tackle, and a tendency to tackle with the closed fist, he is not alone in the game on that.
His fist making contact with Kerry’s Dylan Casey in the league final though, felt something else altogether. Further skirmishes throughout this year have been added to his rap sheet.
His desperation to win feels as though it has compromised his behaviours. Against Cork, a challenge bordering on nasty and robust, was seized upon by the Cork players, urging the referee to punish him with a red.
Against Dublin, he was beaten under kickouts and susceptible to some mind games.
By the end, after serving his 10-minute suspension for a black card and coming on for the second period of extra time, the Dublin crowd were booing his every touch.
Away from the pitch, there are no end of stories about Murphy being a perfect gentleman. McGuinness once noted that everyone who ever sends him a good luck or well done text, gets a reply. That he couldn’t live with himself if he didn’t.
His competitive spirit has overridden his nature over the last few months. But it shouldn’t cast a lasting shadow on what was a remarkable career.
That’s if he goes, of course.
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GAA Long Goodbye Michael Murphy