Jimmy Murray (Gaelic footballer)
Encyclopedia
Jimmy Murray was an Irish
sportsperson who played Gaelic football
with Roscommon
in the 1940s.
, County Londonderry
, was a teacher and his father ran a grocery shop and pub. Murray grew up in Knockcroghery
, County Roscommon
and was educated at the local national school, at Harrison Hall technical school and the De La Salle Brothers school in Roscommon
. From an early age he was a Gaelic football
fanatic and showed great skill at his favourite game. Murray was married to Ann Costello from Headford
, County Galway
. She died in 1992. Murray was a publican by profession.
Away from the field of play, he was a lover of music, especially famous tenors such as Athlone's John McCormack and Mario Lanza
. His party piece was "The West's Awake" and he even recorded this song on a charity CD he produced in 2003 - a recording debutant at the age of 85.Jimmy himself inspired a tune ("Famous Jimmy Murray")recorded by Welsh folk band Allan yn y Fan.
club in Knockcroghery, as well as hurling with Roscommon Gaels. In all he won six Roscommon SFC in 1942, 1943, 1945, 1946, 1948 and 1949. Murray was also a hurler of note and he won a Roscommon SHC medal with the Gaels club in 1938.
team that defeated Limerick
in the All-Ireland junior football semi-final, only to lose to Dublin
in the final. A year later Roscommon returned to win the final with a comprehensive triumph over Westmeath
. The stock of Roscommon football was on the rise and more experienced players like Jimmy Murray, Dr Donal Keenan (later to serve as president of the GAA), Owensie Hoare and Hugh Gibbons looked forward to the arrival on the senior team of the young players who won All-Ireland
minor titles for the county in 1939 and 1941.
The senior breakthrough came in 1943 when Roscommon defeated Galway
in the Connacht
final, a victory that Jimmy Murray later described as "our greatest victory until that point". They went on to beat Louth
in the All-Ireland semi-final and captured their first senior All-Ireland
title with a 2-7 to 2-2 win over Cavan
. Murray’s performance in this match was his finest hour - he had taken Roscommon from oblivion to the All-Ireland title. His brother Phelim also played on that team, and again in 1944, when Roscommon defeated the traditional powerhouses of the game, Kerry
, to add a second title. They were among the select few sets of brothers to play together in and win All-Ireland titles. In 1946, Roscommon came tantalisingly close to adding a third title, however, in the All-Ireland final against Kerry, Murray sustained a broken nose, but came back on to the field to almost score a late winning point. Kerry won the day by 2-8 to 0-10.
As a Gaelic football
er, Jimmy Murray was a stylish and tenacious centre forward who made little of his relatively small stature to thrive in an era when physical strength was celebrated. He had outstanding leadership qualities, and even today his name is cited in Roscommon and national Gaelic Athletic Association
circles as a man to be emulated.
's most decorated Gaelic footballers. The Knockcroghery man is one of only eight captains to lift the Sam Maguire
Cup twice. The other seven captains are Declan O'Sullivan
and Joe Barrett
of Kerry
, J. J. O'Reilly of Cavan
, Seán Flanagan
of Mayo
, Enda Colleran
of Galway
, Tony Hanahoe
of Dublin
and Brian Dooher
of Tyrone. Murray was also the only Roscommon man ever to captain the county to ultimate glory. He was the first man ever to captain a team to back-to-back All-Ireland senior football wins and also still has the distinction of being the only captain to have led a team in five separate All-Ireland senior final match appearances (1943, 1943 replay, 1944, 1946, 1946 replay). In recognition of his skills and long-running contribution to the sport, Murray was awarded the 1993 All-time all-star award
as no GAA All Stars Awards
were being issued at the time of his playing career.
In October 2006 members of the Roscommon minor football team stopped at Murray's pub in Knockcroghery as they transported the All-Ireland minor trophy (Tom Markham Cup) back to the county after defeating Kerry in a replay. "It was a very emotional moment. He was old and feeble, but it meant so much to the players to meet Jimmy," said a Roscommon county board official who witnessed the meeting.
Jimmy Murray died peacefully on 23 January 2007. At the age of 89 he was the oldest surviving double All-Ireland winning captain.
Irish people
The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
sportsperson who played Gaelic football
Gaelic football
Gaelic football , commonly referred to as "football" or "Gaelic", or "Gah" is a form of football played mainly in Ireland...
with Roscommon
Roscommon GAA
For more details of Roscommon GAA see Roscommon Senior Club Football Championship or Roscommon Senior Club Hurling Championship.The Roscommon County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Roscommon GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games...
in the 1940s.
Early & private life
Jimmy Murray was born to John and Susan (née Walls) Murray in 1917. His mother, a native of MagherafeltMagherafelt
Magherafelt is a small town in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It had a population of 8,372 people recorded in the 2001 Census. It is the biggest town in the south of County Londonderry and is the social, economic and political hub of the area...
, County Londonderry
County Londonderry
The place name Derry is an anglicisation of the old Irish Daire meaning oak-grove or oak-wood. As with the city, its name is subject to the Derry/Londonderry name dispute, with the form Derry preferred by nationalists and Londonderry preferred by unionists...
, was a teacher and his father ran a grocery shop and pub. Murray grew up in Knockcroghery
Knockcroghery
Knockcroghery is a rural village in County Roscommon, Ireland. It is located on the N61 road between Athlone and Roscommon town, near Lough Ree on the River Shannon.-Name:...
, County Roscommon
County Roscommon
County Roscommon is a county in Ireland. It is located in the West Region and is also part of the province of Connacht. It is named after the town of Roscommon. Roscommon County Council is the local authority for the county...
and was educated at the local national school, at Harrison Hall technical school and the De La Salle Brothers school in Roscommon
Roscommon
Roscommon is the county town of County Roscommon in Ireland. Its population at the 2006 census stood at 5,017 . The town is located near the junctions of the N60, N61 and N63 roads.-History:...
. From an early age he was a Gaelic football
Gaelic football
Gaelic football , commonly referred to as "football" or "Gaelic", or "Gah" is a form of football played mainly in Ireland...
fanatic and showed great skill at his favourite game. Murray was married to Ann Costello from Headford
Headford
Headford is a town in County Galway, located 26 km north of Galway city in the west of Ireland. The N84 national secondary route from Galway to Castlebar passes through the town. The R333 road travels from Headford to Tuam. There are many other 'boreens' and third-class roads on the...
, County Galway
County Galway
County Galway is a county in Ireland. It is located in the West Region and is also part of the province of Connacht. It is named after the city of Galway. Galway County Council is the local authority for the county. There are several strongly Irish-speaking areas in the west of the county...
. She died in 1992. Murray was a publican by profession.
Away from the field of play, he was a lover of music, especially famous tenors such as Athlone's John McCormack and Mario Lanza
Mario Lanza
right|thumb|[[MGM]] still, circa 1949Mario Lanza was an American tenor and Hollywood movie star of the late 1940s and the 1950s. The son of Italian emigrants, he began studying to be a professional singer at the age of 16....
. His party piece was "The West's Awake" and he even recorded this song on a charity CD he produced in 2003 - a recording debutant at the age of 85.Jimmy himself inspired a tune ("Famous Jimmy Murray")recorded by Welsh folk band Allan yn y Fan.
Club
Murray had great success as a club footballer. He played with his local St. Patrick'sSt. Patrick's GAA
St Patricks GAC is a Gaelic Athletic Association in County Down, Northern Ireland. The club was founded in 1950 and the current playing field is situated near Lisburn. The current playing field is not owned by St Pats. The old playing field was laid on with petrol which was believed to be sectarian...
club in Knockcroghery, as well as hurling with Roscommon Gaels. In all he won six Roscommon SFC in 1942, 1943, 1945, 1946, 1948 and 1949. Murray was also a hurler of note and he won a Roscommon SHC medal with the Gaels club in 1938.
Inter-county
Murray's hugely successful inter-county career began in 1939. That year he played on a RoscommonRoscommon GAA
For more details of Roscommon GAA see Roscommon Senior Club Football Championship or Roscommon Senior Club Hurling Championship.The Roscommon County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Roscommon GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games...
team that defeated Limerick
Limerick GAA
The Limerick County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Limerick GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Limerick...
in the All-Ireland junior football semi-final, only to lose to Dublin
Dublin GAA
Dublin County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association , or Dublin GAA, is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Dublin. The county board is also responsible for the Dublin inter-county teams...
in the final. A year later Roscommon returned to win the final with a comprehensive triumph over Westmeath
Westmeath GAA
The Westmeath County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Westmeath GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Westmeath...
. The stock of Roscommon football was on the rise and more experienced players like Jimmy Murray, Dr Donal Keenan (later to serve as president of the GAA), Owensie Hoare and Hugh Gibbons looked forward to the arrival on the senior team of the young players who won All-Ireland
All-Ireland Minor Football Championship
The All-Ireland Minor Football Championship is the premier "knockout" competition for under-18 competitors of the game of Gaelic football played in Ireland...
minor titles for the county in 1939 and 1941.
The senior breakthrough came in 1943 when Roscommon defeated Galway
Galway GAA
The Galway County Boards of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Galway GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Galway. The county boards are also responsible for the Galway inter-county teams.Unlike all other counties in Ireland,...
in the Connacht
Connacht Senior Football Championship
The Bank of Ireland Connacht Senior Football Championship is an annual Gaelic football competition for the senior county teams of Connacht GAA. A series of games are played during the summer months and the final is played in July....
final, a victory that Jimmy Murray later described as "our greatest victory until that point". They went on to beat Louth
Louth GAA
The Louth County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Louth GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Louth. The county board is also responsible for the Louth inter-county teams....
in the All-Ireland semi-final and captured their first senior All-Ireland
All-Ireland Senior Football Championship
The All-Ireland Senior Football Championship, the premier competition in Gaelic football, is a series of games organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association and played during the summer and early autumn...
title with a 2-7 to 2-2 win over Cavan
Cavan GAA
The Cavan County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Cavan GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Cavan...
. Murray’s performance in this match was his finest hour - he had taken Roscommon from oblivion to the All-Ireland title. His brother Phelim also played on that team, and again in 1944, when Roscommon defeated the traditional powerhouses of the game, Kerry
Kerry GAA
The Kerry County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Kerry...
, to add a second title. They were among the select few sets of brothers to play together in and win All-Ireland titles. In 1946, Roscommon came tantalisingly close to adding a third title, however, in the All-Ireland final against Kerry, Murray sustained a broken nose, but came back on to the field to almost score a late winning point. Kerry won the day by 2-8 to 0-10.
As a Gaelic football
Gaelic football
Gaelic football , commonly referred to as "football" or "Gaelic", or "Gah" is a form of football played mainly in Ireland...
er, Jimmy Murray was a stylish and tenacious centre forward who made little of his relatively small stature to thrive in an era when physical strength was celebrated. He had outstanding leadership qualities, and even today his name is cited in Roscommon and national Gaelic Athletic Association
Gaelic Athletic Association
The Gaelic Athletic Association is an amateur Irish and international cultural and sporting organisation focused primarily on promoting Gaelic games, which include the traditional Irish sports of hurling, camogie, Gaelic football, handball and rounders...
circles as a man to be emulated.
Records
Murray is regarded as one of the Gaelic Athletic AssociationGaelic Athletic Association
The Gaelic Athletic Association is an amateur Irish and international cultural and sporting organisation focused primarily on promoting Gaelic games, which include the traditional Irish sports of hurling, camogie, Gaelic football, handball and rounders...
's most decorated Gaelic footballers. The Knockcroghery man is one of only eight captains to lift the Sam Maguire
Sam Maguire
Samuel Maguire , an Irish republican and Gaelic footballer, is chiefly remembered as the eponym of the Sam Maguire Cup, given to the All-Ireland Senior Champions of Gaelic football.-Early life:...
Cup twice. The other seven captains are Declan O'Sullivan
Declan O'Sullivan
Declan O'Sullivan Declan O'Sullivan Declan O'Sullivan (born 1983 in Cahersiveen, County Kerry is an Irish sportsperson. He plays Gaelic football with his local club Dromid Pearses, his divisional side South Kerry and has been a member of the Kerry senior inter-county team since 2003...
and Joe Barrett
Joe Barrett
Joe Barrett was an Irish sportsperson. He played Gaelic football with his local club Austin Stack's and was a member of the Kerry senior inter-county team from 1923 until 1933. Barrett captained Kerry to the All-Ireland titles of 1929 and 1932.-Biography:Joe Barrett was born at 67 Rock Street,...
of Kerry
Kerry GAA
The Kerry County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Kerry...
, J. J. O'Reilly of Cavan
Cavan GAA
The Cavan County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Cavan GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Cavan...
, Seán Flanagan
Seán Flanagan
Seán Flanagan was an Fianna Fáil politician and Gaelic footballer in Ireland. He served under Taoiseach Jack Lynch as Minister for Health and Minister for Lands .-Early life and education:...
of Mayo
Mayo GAA
The Mayo County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Mayo GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Mayo and the Mayo inter-county teams.-History:...
, Enda Colleran
Enda Colleran
Enda Colleran was an Irish Gaelic football manager and player. He played football with his local club Tuam Stars and was a member of the Galway senior inter-county team from 1961 until 1971. Colleran captained Galway to back-to-back All-Ireland titles in 1965 and 1966 and later served as manager...
of Galway
Galway GAA
The Galway County Boards of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Galway GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Galway. The county boards are also responsible for the Galway inter-county teams.Unlike all other counties in Ireland,...
, Tony Hanahoe
Tony Hanahoe
Tony Hanahoe is a retired Irish Gaelic football manager and former player. He played football with his local club St. Vincent's and was a member of the Dublin senior inter-county team from 1964 until 1979. Hanahoe captained Dublin to the All-Ireland titles in 1976 and 1977...
of Dublin
Dublin GAA
Dublin County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association , or Dublin GAA, is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Dublin. The county board is also responsible for the Dublin inter-county teams...
and Brian Dooher
Brian Dooher
Brian Dooher is an Irish Gaelic footballer who was a member for Tyrone between 1995 and 2011.He has won three All-Ireland Senior Football Championship medals, five Ulster Senior Football Championship and two National League titles with the county...
of Tyrone. Murray was also the only Roscommon man ever to captain the county to ultimate glory. He was the first man ever to captain a team to back-to-back All-Ireland senior football wins and also still has the distinction of being the only captain to have led a team in five separate All-Ireland senior final match appearances (1943, 1943 replay, 1944, 1946, 1946 replay). In recognition of his skills and long-running contribution to the sport, Murray was awarded the 1993 All-time all-star award
GAA All-Time All-Star Award (Football)
The GAA All-Time All-Star Award in Football was an award given on an annual basis to a sportsperson who had made a long-running and considerable contribution to the sport of Gaelic football in Ireland...
as no GAA All Stars Awards
GAA All Stars Awards
The All Stars Awards, currently sponsored by Vodafone, are given annually since 1971 by the Gaelic Athletic Association to the best player in each of the fifteen positions in Gaelic football and Hurling in Ireland. Additionally, one player in each code is selected as the player of the year...
were being issued at the time of his playing career.
Retirement
In November 2003 Jimmy recorded an album "The West's Awake" in his pub in Knockroghery. The proceeds went to Lean ar Aghaidh Resource Centre, Roscommon, for Children with Special Needs. In November 2005 he signed a Limited Edition photo of himself with the Sam Maguire Cup (All Ireland Senior Football Cup) to raise funds for the International Relief and Development Agency GOAL.In October 2006 members of the Roscommon minor football team stopped at Murray's pub in Knockcroghery as they transported the All-Ireland minor trophy (Tom Markham Cup) back to the county after defeating Kerry in a replay. "It was a very emotional moment. He was old and feeble, but it meant so much to the players to meet Jimmy," said a Roscommon county board official who witnessed the meeting.
Jimmy Murray died peacefully on 23 January 2007. At the age of 89 he was the oldest surviving double All-Ireland winning captain.