What Michael Murphy is producing since comeback is remarkable - Éamonn Fitzmaurice

Éamonn Fitzmaurice says the levels Michael Murphy has reached on his Donegal return are quite remarkable.

The former Kerry player and manager was present in Dr Hyde Park last weekend on commentary duty for RTE.

And watching his former Football Review Committee (FRC) colleague orchestrate Donegal’s dramatic 0-19 to 0-15 All-Ireland series group win over Mayo, Fitzmaurice admits the 2012 All-Ireland winning captain has already surpassed even the wildest expectations.

At 35-years-old, the Glenswilly man has somehow honed his battered body, the one with so many previous miles on the clock, back into pristine condition.

Fitzmaurice, who led the Kingdom to an All-Ireland final win over Murphy and Donegal back in 2014, says even when he did suffer a setback, which led to the Mayo goal, he didn’t let his head drop.

And that, he pointed out, is the sign of a real leader.

“First of all, to want to go back was a huge thing for Michael,” Fitzmaurice explained. “But to get into the physical shape he has, at his age, it’s just amazing, remarkable really.

“And you can see he’s still the one leading the group - the rest of the lads still revert to him. I thought there was a snapshot in the final quarter that just sums him up.

“He gave away the ball for David McBrien’s goal - Jordan Flynn intercepted it. And that was so unlike Michael to begin with.

“They still managed to get the goal but the way he chased back the field was something else. And the way he finished out the game, after that setback, was superb.

“His performance for the rest of the game, he played closer to goal when Oisín Gallen went off and he was central to everything Donegal did up until the final whistle.

“A lesser player might have gone into their shell in that situation. But not Michael Murphy. Listen, Michael coming back is so great for Donegal but it’s also great for the game in general. We are all enjoying and admiring him being back on a national stage”.

Fitzmaurice was also impressed with Ciaran Moore and the ruthlessness he showed at the end in making sure Donegal won the game with that brilliant late decider.

“It looked like Fergal Boland had got Mayo the draw they needed to progress. But you have to give Donegal and, in particular, Ciaran Moore serious credit and they had other ideas.

“He was outstanding. Another player in that situation would have been tempted to kick the ball out of play, but he went for the black spot and kicked a fabulous score”.

The FRC have had to deal with plenty of criticism and analysis of their playing rules overhaul, particularly early on, in the National League as things took some getting used to.

But as the championship now approaches the business end of things and straight knockout football, Fitzmaurice definitely feels the product has improved significantly and in a way that has supporters hooked from first ball to last.

Fitzmaurice, along with the likes of Michael Murphy, was part of Jim Gavin’s original FRC panel and the Kerry native remains an integral part of that set-up.

He explains that the FRC will go back to the drawing board at the end of the season and assess what tweaks might be needed to the rule enhancements.

But the ultimate decisions on all of that will be left to Congress and a special sitting pencilled in for October.

“I think the most important thing was that we were asked to do a job but it’s the members of the GAA that ultimately decide what rules come in permanently.

“They elected to experiment for a year and we were given a year to trial them. In general, we’re pleased with what is going on as a result.

“Again, there will be a Special Congress in October and the members will have a decision to make. And that will be to keep some, all or none of the rule enhancements.

“But in general, we’re quite happy with how it’s going. There is a fierce excitement around football at the minute. The rules are helping and so too is, I think, that the teams are at an equal standing.

“The crowds are back too. There was a great atmosphere in Hyde Park. I just glanced down from the press box and everyone was just completely engrossed in it.

“And look, it’s not perfect and we never believed it would be. It might take a couple of years, if the majority of the rules are adopted, to really get the hang of them”.

Meanwhile, pressed on who he thinks is in the driving seat for Sam Maguire, Fitzmaurice admits that the chaotic nature of things so far means it simply can’t be called with any degree of certainty.

Again, he believes the new rules have played their part in all of that.

“It’s impossible to call. The one consistency this season, from what I’ve seen, is that it’s inconsistent. No one is shooting the lights out.

“It’s about winning games. We’re looking at a scenario now where the provincial winners, whatever ones do get through to the quarter-finals, will be out three weeks in a row. It’s all good, all positive and very exciting.

“Who is going to win it, that’s an impossible call. But we’ll all enjoy watching it unfold”.