Captain Bob Murphy will retire as one of the Western Bulldogs’ all-time AFL greats.
Coach Luke Beveridge, who famously presented his medal to Murphy after last year’s historic premiership, said the 35-year-old deserved to be spoken of among the club’s pantheon.
The Bulldogs sit outside the top eight and Murphy’s dream of becoming a premiership player is unlikely to be fulfilled.
But Beveridge said Murphy’s influence on their first flag since 1954 was profound and he deserved to be compared with famous Bulldogs such as Ted Whitten Snr, Charlie Sutton, Doug Hawkins and Chris Grant.
“He should be in there with all those guys,” Beveridge said.
“The premiership was built off momentum and people forget what he did in 2015 – an All-Australian captain.
“As much as he didn’t take the field as part of the 22, we wouldn’t have gotten there if it hadn’t been for him.”
Murphy is yet to watch a replay of last year’s grand final and the scenes on the presentation dais, when Beveridge gave him the medal.
“It will be an ache that I didn’t have my footy boots on,” Murphy said of how he will feel when he watches the footage.
“But there’s no bigger Bulldogs supporter than me.
“You inherit a club’s mission when you arrive … the ’54 heroes, they were like ghost stories in some regard.
“So I’m filled with enormous joy and satisfaction that I had a pretty good seat to witness it.”
Murphy missed most of last season with a knee reconstruction and said at Tuesday’s retirement announcement he nearly called it quits three times last year.
The flanker is glad he decided to keep playing for one more season.
“It’s a pretty good rule to live by – if your wife (Justine) and your coach say you should play on, that’s probably not a bad place to start,” he said.
The media conference was classic Murphy, one of the game’s most likeable and intriguing characters.
His long list of thank you’s included Australian rock stars Tim Rogers, Tex Perkins and Paul Kelly for their spiritual sustenance – and a tribute to the famous beard of former teammate Ben Hudson.
Justine and their children Jarvis, Frankie, Delilah, plus Murphy’s sister Bridget, looked on as Murphy spoke.
“I will thank you the only way a father and a husband knows how and that’s with a Winnebago trip up the coast of Australia at the end of this year,” he said.
Murphy admitted the widespread adulation he receives does not sit comfortably, noting the people who think he’s a knob, but Beveridge said the acknowledgement is necessary.
“At times we get a bit mushy and even a bit over the top with all that stuff, maybe in regards to Bob,” he said.
“But it’s because we feel that deeply about him.”
Murphy joins a stellar list of retirees that includes teammate Matthew Boyd and all-time greats such as Luke Hodge and Nick Riewoldt.
BOB MURPHY’S AFL CAREER
AGE: 35
GAMES: 310
DRAFT: Pick 13, 1999 national draft
DEBUT: 2000, round 19 (vs Carlton)
GOALS: 182
HONOURS: All Australian (2011, 2015), All Australian captain (2015), club captaincy (2015-17)
