Current Player #23 Josh Murphy

[Swaby39]

It struck me straight away that he's obviously a popular member of the dressing room. With both goals he set up, there was a clamber to celebrate with him. You have to wonder what's been going on behind closed doors. Manning has obviously got through to him recently but even before that, he's been fit and available every week.

One swallow doesn't make a summer but if that level is maintained, I can't wait to watch him next year. In the situation we are in, I think he can erase history and start again with a similar performance on Saturday and a win.

 

[Foley]

they did - my Sister is collecting some from the club( Rosie , I think?) today - AND they had a very brief tribute on the scoreboard at Half time too ( which I missed- as I was using the 'facilities')

I read that. Good write up Sarge

 

[Sarge]

they did - my Sister is collecting some from the club( Rosie , I think?) today - AND they had a very brief tribute on the scoreboard at Half time too ( which I missed- as I was using the 'facilities')

my nephew got a pic of the scoreboard tribute last night ....

 

[Scotchegg]

I was surprised with his reaction.

He has been given far more than a 'bit' of stick. What he should have done is put the bird up to some of the crowd for their, frankly, appalling treatment of him. No one has mentioned him being 'booed' onto the pitch yet. Idiots, whoever you are.

He's a better man than I am.

Unfortunately Murphy was seen as Robinsons man and got a load of stick from those piling in on our former manager.

I said at the time that some of the stuff about Murphy not wanting to play and not caring was not only wrong, but irresponsible Sadly that mud has stuck and some will never see beyond it. Only a week or so ago we had those saying that they never want to see him in an Oxford shirt again, and I hope they can now see how stupid those comments were.

Murphy has had a difficult time over the last couple of years, and a great game or two doesn't erase everything that has gone on before. But no one should ever be boo'ed on to the pitch, especially when we desperately need everyone to be at their best, and he was very much the bigger man with his response.

If Manning (and the rest of the squad) can get Josh enjoying his football and playing at anywhere near his best consistently then we may well have something special on our hands.

 

[Carpy]

Unfortunately Murphy was seen as Robinsons man and got a load of stick from those piling in on our former manager.

I'm not sure I entirely agree with this bit, sure some may have seen it that way, and sure some may have done as you say, but from what I've seen, it was mostly folks being pretty annoyed that someone who is paid a serious amount of money, never bothered to actually turn up (on the pitch), this was made worse by the fact that it was pretty obvious that he has an abundance of talent, and we needed a sprinkling of talent pretty bloody badly.

The last few appearances he's improved immeasurably, and I think everyone would love that to continue, he could be a seriously good player at this level, that much is clear.

 

[Scotchegg]

I'm not sure I entirely agree with this bit, sure some may have seen it that way, and sure some may have done as you say, but from what I've seen, it was mostly folks being pretty annoyed that someone who is paid a serious amount of money, never bothered to actually turn up, this was made worse by the fact that it was pretty obvious that he has an abundance of talent, and we needed a sprinkling of talent pretty bloody badly.

The last few appearances he's improved immeasurably, and I think everyone would love that to continue, he could be a seriously good player at this level, that much is clear.

The "never bothered to turn up" was a line pushed by one or two posters and taken as gospel by others.

 

[Carpy]

The "never bothered to turn up" was a line pushed by one or two posters and taken as gospel by others.

On the pitch, he absolutely didn't at times, turning up to training, way above my pay grade unfortunately, I am but a mere mortal

 

[YellowTaxi]

On the pitch, he absolutely didn't at times, turning up to training, way above my pay grade unfortunately, I am but a mere mortal

Well maybe stick to talking about things you are qualified to talk about.

We have no idea whatsoever what has been happening with Josh Murphy.and speculation about people can be very damaging. perhaps we should just stick to being delighted that he is now playing with huge enthusiasm for our club and seems to be rediscovering his talent, and his zest for the game

 

[Carpy]

Well maybe stick to talking about things you are qualified to talk about.

Have a read of my posts again before getting rude, I simply questioned whether he got stick because Karl signed him, or because he wasn't performing.

This is a forum for Oxford fans, sometimes fans disagree, qualifications are not required, neither is rudeness.

 

[YellowTaxi]

Have a read of my posts again before getting rude, I simply questioned whether he got stick because Karl signed him, or because he wasn't performing.

This is a forum for Oxford fans, sometimes fans disagree, qualifications are not required, neither is rudeness.

What you posted was.. “.., it was mostly folks being pretty annoyed that someone who is paid a serious amount of money, never bothered to actually turn up”

That seems not only to say that he wasn’t performing- but to express an opinion for why he wasn’t performing “ never bothered” and point blame at the player as well as complaining about his wages /which if he was suffering from mental or physical illness or another emotional crisis are entirely irrelevant.

 

[TailsWeWin]

Well maybe stick to talking about things you are qualified to talk about.

We have no idea whatsoever what has been happening with Josh Murphy.and speculation about people can be very damaging. perhaps we should just stick to being delighted that he is now playing with huge enthusiasm for our club and seems to be rediscovering his talent, and his zest for the game

Unnecessarily rude response.
Those fans who criticised Murphy when he played with little enthusiasm and even less skill were correct, at the time, to criticise his performances. We now have the “holier than thou” comments from the (you can guess who) posters claiming the moral high ground and that he’s ok really.
He is a talented footballer who has, in the past, let us down with his attitude on the pitch (for whatever reason) and yes, it’s great to see him performing at the level we suspected he really could.
Long may it continue.

 

[Carpy]

What you posted was.. “.., it was mostly folks being pretty annoyed that someone who is paid a serious amount of money, never bothered to actually turn up”

That seems not only to say that he wasn’t performing- but to express an opinion for why he wasn’t performing “ never bothered” and point blame at the player as well as complaining about his wages /which if he was suffering from mental or physical illness or another emotional crisis are entirely irrelevant.

I'm not sure what you expect, he is paid a lot of money, and he wasn't performing to a level (amongst many others this season) that warranted such large sums, it is entirely normal for fans of a football club to not be overly impressed by this.

I have no idea why he wasn't performing and I have offered no opinion on this, but just like our new manager has confirmed on RadOx, expectations of him were higher.

None of this is ground breaking stuff.

 

[Brahma]

Those fans who criticised Murphy when he played with little enthusiasm and even less skill were correct, at the time, to criticise his performances. We now have the “holier than thou” comments from the (you can guess who) posters claiming the moral high ground and that he’s ok really.
He is a talented footballer who has, in the past, let us down with his attitude on the pitch (for whatever reason) and yes, it’s great to see him performing at the level we suspected he really could.

'Perceived' little enthusiasm and 'Perceived' less skill.

I've been pretty balanced on the Murphy abuse in recent weeks. I'll maintain anyone who booed him onto the pitch last night, is an idiot. Not claiming any moral high ground; he's got a serious injury he has to manage, he has been given utter dogs abuse from a small minority of supporters (including seeing it fit to chant 'what a waste of money and you're not fit to wear the shirt') and yet some people think that's the way to get a tune out of him. Anyone who thinks that, is also an idiot.

Whilst he's in the team, whilst we're on the verge of relegation, I make no apologises for asking people to encourage him and support him, into some form or meaningful contribution.

Did I say those who booed at him as he 'came on' are idiots?

 

[bazzer9461]

The "never bothered to turn up" was a line pushed by one or two posters and taken as gospel by others.

Until the last couple of games and one against Charlton. You would wonder why he is paid the alleged 7k a week. There have been a lot of a comments on here and other social media outlets and at the Grenoble road stadium wondering WTF do we have here and people quite rightly will question that.
Maybe he didn’t like Robinson not many fans apart from a couple of posters liked Robinson this season but maybe now Manning has found a way to manage him and bring out the player we have seen in the last couple of games.

 

[YellowTaxi]

I expect a forum moderator to understand why speculating about players motivations is not a good idea.

Thank goodness that the days when mental illness, depression, bereavement are just a matter of willpower and that if a player isn't performing on the pitch or not up to playing it's because they "can't be bothered" are gone- or I thought they were.

 

[Swaby39]

I'm not sure what you expect, he is paid a lot of money, and he wasn't performing to a level (amongst many others this season) that warranted such large sums, it is entirely normal for fans of a football club to not be overly impressed by this.

I have no idea why he wasn't performing and I have offered no opinion on this, but just like our new manager has confirmed on RadOx, expectations of him were higher.

None of this is ground breaking stuff.

It's a chance to wag the finger that some just can't resist. Until this week he was an incredibly difficult player to get behind. Fair play to him, he's reacted, but the only people who deserve any credit are Josh himself and Liam Manning.

 

[MJB]

my nephew got a pic of the scoreboard tribute last night ....


View attachment 13072

Glad you got a good photo of it.

I took a photo too to share with you, although my phone was unable to get a decent shot from the East Stand unfortunately.

Was thinking about you and your family again when the tribute was made. Glad that the team gave him a suitable performance on the evening of your family’s tribute.

 

[CCYellow]

Mad how the same people saying "don't bring up his previous performances, they're in the past now" are all to happy to then refer to comments made in the past, about those previous performances.

 

[Scotchegg]

Mad how the same people saying "don't bring up his previous performances, they're in the past now" are all to happy to then refer to comments made in the past, about those previous performances.

Not that mad if you consider given people a fair chance, especially if that chance then helps us in our quest to stay up?

I would say it's more madness to have seen a good performance from a player in a vital game to then look to bring up negatives instead.

 

[dickwalton1964]

I think that last kick of the game penalty miss at Wednesday really hampered Murphy. It denied him being the hero who gets us three points at arguably the biggest club in L1. If that goes in it, at the very least, buys him an indifferent performance or too. It's a tame penalty, with little conviction, and I think that sets the tone. His next few performances weren't the best, then he gets injured, then the team are playing absolutely awful on his return. A lot seems to have gone against him in his time here and possibly some self inflicted but lets hope last night is the proper kick start to his Oxford career. He's a talent for sure.