Michael Murphy has recalled a magical moment he experienced as a young boy with the late Míchéal Ó Muircheartaigh at Croke Park.
The All-Ireland winning captain was speaking following the death of the legendary broadcaster yesterday at the age of 93 years.
Michael revealed how a very long journey to Dublin with his dad Mick was peppered with requests by young Michael to go to Croke Park – even though there was nothing on!
Mick finally gave in but it was Míchéal Ó Muircheartaigh who saved the day!
Michael revealed “The first thing that pops into my head is his smile. As a young fella, I went up to Dublin, my mum’s brother, so my aunt and uncle, live out in Dunshaughlin and we were up visiting.
“I remember nagging dad the whole way through the trip, ‘We have to go to Croke Park, we have to go to Croke Park’, just thinking it was that easy to rock into Croke Park to see it.
“I went into Croke Park that day and probably like any venue, it’s not just some place that you can knock at the door to go in and see the pitch. I was told that there was nothing on.
The legend that is Michael Murphy recalls a special moment as a boy with a legend that was Míchéal Ó Muircheartaigh.
“As a sad young fella, I was coming out the main door and who came in the other way but Mícheál Ó Muircheartaigh.
“He just had a big, warm smile and eventually we got around to telling him the story that we were down from Donegal. He was asking away about Anthony Molloy and the 1992 Donegal team, going through everything.
“I didn’t pluck up the courage but I think dad asked if there was any chance we could get in. And he brought us the whole way in. He must have had a chat with reception and brought us into pitchside. That’s the strongest memory I have of him. He was GAA through and through.
“At events and talks that we would have gone to, he was the voice of GAA. If somebody asked me who’s the voice of GAA, you would have pictured him and hearing him.
“The best communicators, you can hear them but you’re also able to feel them. And he had a way of doing that.
“A phenomenal story teller and just a really engaging communicator who could awaken all your senses. Some of the legendary lines he had for describing places and people, he was something else.”
