We are not achieving greater than the sum of the parts says Bryan Murphy

Tommy Callaghan chats with Bryan Murphy, former Kildare senior player, minor and U21 manager who is now seeking the position of County Board Chairman

Speak of Bryan Murphy and the first thing that comes to mind is 1998, the Leinster final, Kildare versus Meath, that famous goal that put Kildare on their way to winning their Leinster title in all of 42 years.

Soon after Cork native Bryan Murphy, moved to Kildare he says he was fortunate to be invited into the Kildare panel by Mick O'Dwyer (and selector Pat McCarthy).

These days Bryan is the UK Sales Director for Dawn Farm in Naas. It is he says “a nice title, but at the end of the day it just means getting the job done; it is all about working with people.”

The former Clane player has now put his name forward for the upcoming position of Kildare Co. Board Chairman.

So why now, or simply, why?

“I have spent most of my life involved in the GAA, if I'm not working, it is being involved in the GAA; since I came up here it is only a few years I have not been involved at some level at club, inter-county level, either playing, or coaching; having also been involved with Padraig (Nolan), with Cian O'Neill (O'Neill) and Jack (O'Connor) with the senior county team.

“As to why get involved now, it is something I have been thinking about it for some time but probably when Eoin Doyle announced his retirement from inter-county a couple of months ago it really got me thinking.

“Eoin is one of the first lads I put through my hands back in the day when I was involved with minor and U21 with Kildare and here was a guy who had given 15 years or so to Kildare and he is only one of many, I am using him as an example, he finished his career in a very under-rated fashion; fair to say he didn't achieve what he aspired to achieve and you could argue that his career in Kildare at senior was unfulfilled. Go back to all the good, all the great players in the same boat and you wonder, how long do we continue in that vain.”

Murphy is putting his name forward along with former Co Hurling Board Chairman, Colm Nolan (Maynooth) who is seeking the Vice-Chair, adds “I am not saying I have the magic sauce, all I can do is work hard and Colm and myself will work hard to try and deliver if elected.”

It was back in 2007, Bryan explains: “I was asked by Syl Merrins, then Co Board Chairman, to put a plan in place for underage level and with Noel Mooney, we outlined a vision of what we thought we might and what we could achieve; we got everything in place and, to be honest, I think this (seeking the chair) is no different; I am not trying to upset people, all I am trying to do is trying to elevate, trying to unlock the potential that everyone knows and believes is in Kildare in both football and hurling and that is why myself and Colm are looking to get involved.”

In 2018 we won the inaugural U20 All-Ireland under Davy Burke and his group of players; now Brian (Flanagan) has come in and developed further on that getting to the Leinster and winning the All-Ireland last year and is now taking over at senior level, adding, but we are certaily in a transitional place at the moment.

“If you look at the underage success in Kildare, no one likes playing Kildare anymore, we are very competitive at underage and the big question for us is how do we foster that and bring it on to senior, while keeping to our values.”

Murphy adds: “We have always had good players, excellent players; we have good people at the county board and this should not by any means be looked at us putting our names in the hat as an attack on the board,I have nothing but the height of respect for everyone who puts their shoulders to the wheel for Kildare; nobody gets involved to hold Kildare back; the people in there (county board) have done a great job, have a great legacy in Conleth's; have done great work in Hawkfield; we now have to build on that.

“We have had great administrators down through the years people on the county board that I have been involved with, all very good people, very good school teams going through the systems, so everything you look at and say there are loads of elements in Kildare that are really strong , yet why when you put all those elements together we are still not achieving greater than the sum of the parts which is delivering and playing at the highest level on a consistent basis?”

What can you and Colm bring to change from being close, at times, but not there?

“Isn't that the 60 million dollar question, but we all have to sit down and be absolutely honest with ourselves and understand if we get in, or whoever gets in, has to ask the hard questions; what are the challenges that are holding us back in achieving our potential; have we got the right structures in place; the right personnel to deliver in the short and medium and long term goals. These are all the questions we have to ask ourselves, honestly and fairly.”

The former Kildare and minor and U21 boss said we can't be afraid of change and if there is something that needs to be changed we have got to be honest with ourselves that this needs to be changed.

“Myself and Colm (Nolan) certainly have ideas but it is certainly not a case of going in and saying this is the way we are going to do things. It is all about engaging with the stakeholders, no one person has the answer to this but we have got to engage with people and got to try and find the best path forward, we are all working with one common goal in mind, which to me is having our senior teams competing at the highest level and consistently.

“I truly believe if we can achieve that (competing at the highest level) everything else elevates and on the back of all the good work that the county board have done, we now have to build on the work in terms of trying to unlock the potential of Kildare.”

And what about the administrative side of the County Board, you have little or no experience of that?

“While I'm talking mainly about teams and all that but I am conscious there is a lot of administration work there but again it is about bringing in good people around you and helping in those areas; getting people around you that have the strength and the ability, have the desire, have the passion to move those things and keep them moving; if Mick Mullen or Bryan Murphy has to be involved in every ounce of administration then there is something wrong there, it is just not possible.”

So you would be bringing in other people?

Isn't that what the GAA is about, a good friend of mine said many years ago there is a job for everyone in the GAA you just have to find what the right job is” adding, “there will always be paper work, there will always be administration work but remember there are a lot of good people in the county board and there will be a lot of good people in the county board whether I get elected or Colm gets elected, I hope they will all still be there and still drive on and get the job done.”

It could certainly be leveled at me that I have no county board administration experience but I have a lifetime spent in the GAA.

“Every day is a learning day and there is a lot of unknowns for me going into this and then I am lucky that Colm has a lot of experience, but there are a lot of great people in Kildare, a lot of great people involved with the County Board today that I hope will still be involved with the County Board; I hope I am not seen as a threat to anybody; the bottom line is I just want to see Kildare delivering on the potential that I think and believe is there, that has always been the way.”

Bryan Murphy finished off our chat saying “if Mick (Mullen) was to get the job and he wanted me to help him in some shape or form I would be happy to try and do so” adding “ this is not about me, not about any one individual, this is solely about Kildare football and hurling.”