Mark Gallagher
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58 The Title AMERICAN FOOTBALL The Irish Mail on Sunday December 17, 2017 By Mark Gallagher SNAP: ‘There are Gaelic N the summer days of his childhood, Patrick players who Murray nailed a lot of last-minute points to could make the win Ulster finals, usually against Cavan or transition’ Tyrone. This was when the young Murray would be transplanted back to Monaghan from New Jersey for a couple of months every year and he was kicking ball with his cousinsI in the shadow of St Tiernach’s Park, pretending to be his uncles Ciaran or Brendan, who won provincial medals in the 1980s. Murray might have never experienced what it was like to play in the cauldron of Clones on a sweltering midsummer’s afternoon, but he recently reprised his childhood role as a last- gasp matchwinner. He just did so in America’s most popular sport with the state of Florida watching on. With seven seconds remaining in Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ regular NFL season joust with the Miami Dolphins, the score was tied at 20-20 when he attempted a 35-metre field goal. It sailed through the posts. ‘That was amazing. The first time I kicked the winning field goal and to do it against the Dol- phins, yeah it was pretty special,’ he says. It gave the Bucs a rare win in a mediocre season, which was all the sweeter because it was against State rivals. However, last week’s disappoint- ing home defeat to the Detroit Lions extinguished any faint play-off hopes for Tampa Bay. When they meet the Atlanta Falcons tomorrow night — in a game live on Sky Sports — the Bucs, owned by the Glazer family which also owns Manchester United, will only be playing for pride. In a poor season for Tampa Bay, Murray has been the one bright light. He is now statistically the best kicker in their history, the last-sec- ond kick against Miami indictive of how he has played all year. ‘It has been going well. When the ball is going through the posts, things are always going well,’ Mur- ray says. He insists that he didn’t think of ‘I never bought into that. I the magnitude of the kick and just Patrick Murray credits deep roots in don’t believe in curses,’ Mur- went through his normal routine. ray states baldly. However, the ‘You do the same thing all the time. HARDYlocal press seizedBUCC upon his Irish I went through my same routine. It ethnicity as a curiosity and ran was the same for Dean Rock when Gaelic football for his rise to become with a story that the kicker had he lined up that winning free against been using a medium to ease Mayo in the All-Ireland final. He fears ahead of his return to went through the same thing he had the best kicker in Tampa NFL history Tampa Bay. Murray is keen to done a thousand times before, dismiss that story. because he knew it worked.’ ‘People were thinking that I It seems strange to listen to a steps back and two steps over. Murray’s uncle Ciaran has been knee injury. It was great to meet was talking to the dead and try- player immersed in the multi-mil- That’s how I kick.’ the physio to the Irish soccer team them both.’ ing to raise them when that story lion dollar industry of the NFL using Having emerged as a stellar kick- for the past two decades and when Murray was a free agent at the came out. It was nothing of the Dean Rock’s winning free in this ing talent in his college football Ireland played Mexico in the Metlife time and although he got some work type. I just did a bit of work with a year’s All-Ireland final as a parallel career with Fordham University, he Stadium this past June, he organ- with New Orleans Saints in pre-sea- sports psychologist. I thought I to his own kicking. But Murray is no was snapped up by Tampa Bay in ised a meeting with Martin O’Neill son, he remained so until early in needed to because I was coming ordinary NFL player. the 2014 draft. And he had an excel- and Roy Keane. the season when Nick Folk’s travails back from a serious knee injury. The Tampa Bay kicker may have lent rookie campaign, kicking over ‘Martin O’Neill is the biggest NFL as the Buccaneers’ kicker meant But I wasn’t talking to a medium or been brought up in New Jersey but 80 per cent of his field goals. Until fan I ever met in my life,’ Murray that he came back to his first NFL trying to raise people from the dead. this is a man who bleeds Monaghan disaster struck when he tore his says almost in disbelief. ‘He knew club. I honestly don’t know where that GAA and credits his kicking style cruciate — an injury so common in all of my stats from all of my games, And he claims that he came back a story came from.’ — which has made him the most GAA. and knew stats from basically every different player. ‘This is my fourth Of course, maybe they are just successful field-goal kicker in the ‘I had a great rookie year and then team. Honestly, I haven’t met a season now, as opposed to my first. looking for answers as to how Mur- club’s history with an 87 per cent tore my ACL. Came back, went to bigger NFL fan. He was I feel I am a stronger person, men- ray has settled seamlessly back into success rate — from his formative Cleveland Browns and tore my obsessive about it. When tally because of the injuries I had his role and turned out to be the years kicking Gaelic football. patellar tendon in the same knee. Tampa Bay re-signed me, to come through. And a stronger most accurate kicker in the fran- And even though his current con- From never having an injury before Martin was able to tell person emotionally too because chise’s history. The 26-year-old feels tract precludes him from playing in my career, I had two really bad Ciaran that it had hap- those injuries give you a differ- it all goes back to his Gaelic foot- with his Rockland GAA club, he knee injuries, one straight after pened before he found ent perspective.’ balling past. intends to return to his first love another. When you are lying on an out. Within the Bucs, there was Murray reckons that more Gaelic when he finishes in the NFL. operating table, preparing for a sec- ‘And Roy gave me talk of a curse afflicting footballers could make the transi- Before the Bucs’ practice every ond serious knee surgery, you find some good insights their kickers. Not only tion to American football. In the day, Murray can be seen kicking an out a lot about what kind of man and into coming back did Murray do his mid-1990s, there was a strong O’Neill’s ball around. ‘Just to loosen what kind of athlete you are.’ from a serious cruciate but Con- rumour that Atlanta Falcons tried to my leg up before practise,’ he nor Barth tore his coax Maurice Fitzgerald over as a explains. Achilles tendon, kicker while Offaly’s Tom Furlong ‘The way I kick a ball is the same another kicker, almost had an NFL career in the way I would have kicked a Gaelic Lawrence 1960s as a goal-kicker, only for a ball because that is how I was Martin O’Neill is Tynes, con- serious knee injury. brought up. The Gaelic ball is obvi- tracted MRSA A number of AFL players have ously a lot heavier. That has helped the biggest NFL fan I while Folk been brought over to the NFL now me create that strength, power and couldn’t kick and Murray believes the examples whip I brought into this game. When snow off a rope in of how Australians, such as Jordan it comes down to it, I used the exact ever met in my life... the first five Berry (punter for the Pittsburgh same routine I had when I stand games of this sea- Steelers) have made the transition, over a free in Gaelic Park, three he knew all my stats son. shows it can be done. December 17, 2017 The Irish Mail on Sunday v1 AMERICAN FOOTBALL The Title 59 Former UCI President Cookson was 83.3 Career field goal percentage by Murray – which aware of Froome’s salbutamol test puts him in the top 20 kickers in NFL history CYCLING By Matt Slater BRIAN COOKSON was made aware of four-time Tour de France champion Chris Froome’s adverse analytical finding in his final hours in office as head of SPOTLIGHT: cycling’s governing body. Froome had Froome is under scrutiny after a elevated test during his La Vuelta win in levels of September showed elevated salbutamol levels of the asthma drug in his system salbutamol, which could result in and (inset) an anti-doping rule violation and a Brian ban. Cookson Cookson, then the UCI president, lost his bid for re- ‘I cannot comment further on victory in La Vuelta, the Tour of election to France’s David this or any other ongoing case.’ Spain. Lappartient who won the vote on Cookson had said Froome’s The result is not automatically September 21. A former member adverse analytical finding was a classified as a positive test and of Team Sky’s supervisory board, matter for the independent CADF the 32-year-old has not been on Thursday he said he had ‘no (Cycling Anti-Doping Foundation) suspended, but he must provide a role or influence’ in how Froome’s and the Legal Anti-Doping Service satisfactory explanation.