Over the next few weeks as part of our build up to the 2010 domestic season Cover Point will be featuring emerging talent from around the island we’re tipping to make an impact in 2010 and indeed over the next decade in Irish cricket.
Seventeen year old Tomas Murphy is the first from Leinster we’re tipping to watch out for in 2010. A grandson of Tom Murphy, one of Fingal’s greatest cricketers, Tomas moved from Balbriggan CC to The Hills in 2009. After a successful run with the 2nds, he broke into The Hills first XI in the second half of the ’09 season. Batting down the order he helped The Hills to finish the season strongly, eventually finishing 3rd in Section A.
Tomas Murphy
Will Dwyer, Assistant Coach at The Hills, recalls a couple of moments from last season’s campaign involving Tomas.
‘I remember a couple of incidents from last year. The first one was a match when we were in trouble against North County. I remember Tomas pulled Boatsy (Andre Botha) off the front foot through mid-wicket for four. Tomas wasn’t intimidated by the situation or the big reputations of some of the opposition.”
“The other occasion was a rain-affected match against Leinster in Rathmines. It was a match we should have won easily. We were chasing a small total of 120 or so but the rain was coming and we just needed to get ahead of Duckworth Lewis. The problem was we started to lose wickets and the target started to climb alarmingly. Anyway Tomas came in and stayed with JB (Jeremy Bray) until the end. He only made about 15 or so but the pressure was on, the rain was falling and he batted about for about 40 or 50 minutes to see us home.”
"Tomas is a quiet lad and he gets the job done without fuss. He had a good grounding in Balbriggan and he made good progress with us last season. He’ll be batting in our top six this season.”
Profile and Interview
Full Name: Tomás Murphy
Date of Birth: 22/10/92
Club - The Hills CC
Bats - Right-handed
Bowls - Right-Arm Medium
CP: When did you start to play cricket?
TM: Since I was about 6 or 7.
CP: What sparked your interest in the game?
TM: It's in both sides of my family.
CP: Favourite cricketer and why?
TM: Shaun Pollock. A great all-rounder who led by example and had a never say die attitude.
CP: Biggest influence and why?
TM: My Family. There was many good players in my family so I had to live up to the reputation!
CP: Ambitions for 2010?
TM: To contribute to a winning first team in The Hills and surpass expectations.
CP: Ambitions beyond 2010?
TM: I would love to be part of a U19 world cup squad but that will take a lot of work. There is plenty of competition.
CP: Proudest achievement to date?
TM: Playing for Ireland at U13 level.
CP: Biggest disappointment to date?
TM: Not being picked for Ireland U17 trials this year.
CP: What else are you passionate about?
TM: I'm a keen Man United supporter.
CP: What other interests have you / what other sports do you play?
TM: I play a lot of football during the winter and the odd round of golf during the summer.
CP: What could Irish cricket be doing (if anything) that it is not doing already to make the sport more popular?
TM: I think the main area to promote the game is in schools at a young age though there is a lot being done there already.
Other than that I think the more successful Ireland can be at international level, the more interest will be generated in the sport as we have seen with the last world cup.
Tomas Murphy in conversation with Liam Rooney
Copyright: Cover Point
