Bar shooting him out of a cannon and onto the field at Mac Cumhaill Park in Ballybofey, it’s hard to know how Michael Murphy could have made more of an impact.
A thrill of excitement fizzled around the ground as he discarded the woolly hat and red bib and was summoned down from the substitutes’ section to make his return for his county – despite announcing his retirement in November 2022.
But here he was. Back again. A player venerated by his football people, even if the grey that runs through a thinning thatch is testament to his 35 years.
— CLG Dhún na nGall (@officialdonegal) February 16, 2025
Donegal 0-21 Armagh 1-10
Donegal’s All-Ireland winning captain of 2012 entered the fray to a hero’s welcome – at least as far as the home fans were concerned.
Aidan Forker? Not so much. Within seconds, Murphy found himself being met by Armagh‘s own All-Ireland winning captain of 2024 who got in his face, instigated a pushing match and then lost the rag completely by dropping his head into Murphy’s chest. Referee Seán Hurson took an understandably dim view. Straight red.
Suddenly the place was electric. Andrew Murnin had previously kicked Armagh’s second two-pointer in a row to leave just two in it when Donegal had kicked 10 in a row and looked to be in exhibition mode in the first half, taking a 0-12 to 1-3 lead into the interval.
Within a minute of his introduction, Armagh goalkeeper Ethan Rafferty mis-hit a kickout straight to Murphy and it was just like of old as he took it on, soloed, and swung it over with his left boot. Less than five minutes later he was coming on the loop and taking the ball off Peadar Mogan and curling one over with his right.
The Donegal fans in the attendance of over 13,000 just cheered and lapped it all up.
🚨 WATCH: FULL-TIME HIGHLIGHTS 📺
Donegal have a convincing win in Ballybofey 🟢🟡
— The GAA (@officialgaa) February 16, 2025
Including the return of a 🐐 @officialdonegal 0-21@Armagh_GAA 1-10#AllianzLeagues #MichaelMurphy#GAANOW has the best of the game 👇👇 pic.twitter.com/e8P59dI2pD
As if to prove he wasn’t just going to be an inside target man, Murphy drifted out to show his aerial ability. When Cian McConville kicked a point for Armagh, Donegal goalkeeper Shaun Patton aimed the kick-out in Murphy’s direction and he leapt over Niall Grimley to fetch it as he came down. It led on to a clinching Donegal point before he rounded off the day’s scoring by kicking a close range free.
As the final hooter sounded, it felt fitting that it was Murphy who had the ball in his hands last. "It’s great to have him back," said team captain Paddy McBrearty. "He’s going to be a vital cog for us."
That’s for sure. Especially when you add in how served under Football Review Committee chair Jim Gavin and helped redesign this new vision for, which should play to his target man ability and kicking skills.
Armagh started promisingly, Ethan Rafferty slotting a 45 before Darragh McMullan clipped a point from a tight angle and then put a goal between the sides. His finish was top class, bending his right foot around the ball and steering it to the far right corner.
Donegal took over from that point, hitting 10 points in a row.
A lightning counter-attack is a big reason why. You could hear the thrill of excitement as Donegal turned Armagh over inside the arc and took off in numbers.
The solo and go free means the traditional cynical foul on the player in possession doesn’t have the same effect in slowing down the play and allowing the defending team to flood bodies back. Even if a foul occurs, the player can take it himself in the same instant and can’t be impeded in the moment or the ball will be brought forward 50 metres.
And Donegal were lethal off turnover ball, McBrearty popping up at the end of different moves and finishing the match with six points to his name.
Conor O’Donnell, Jamie Brennan and Oisín Gallen all looked so threatening and that run of scoring was rounded off when Ethan Rafferty slipped and was punished for over-carrying. Then penalised for not handing the ball back. Which meant Gallen had a giveaway 13 metre free in front of the posts.
Double scores at half-time, 0-12 to 1-3, it was significant too that there were no two pointers in Donegal’s total.
And it was successive Armagh two-pointers from Ben Crealey and Andrew Murnin that brought the visitors back into it.
At least, until one man limbered up on the sideline and then joined the fray around the 44-minute mark.
Donegal could have had a goal before that too when Rafferty made a smart double save.
First, he made himself big to block Jamie Brennan, and then the Armagh goalkeeper made a great block from close range on Oisín Gallen who had snaffled the follow up.
McBrearty kicked an inspired score to rouse the home crowd and then it was all about that man Murphy. Now that’s how you make a comeback.
*This article was originally published on Extra.ie.
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